Major News Going Pay Per View

That’s right: pay per view is going mainstream. Seriously mainstream.

Recently, News Corporation CEO Rupert Murdoch announced that viewers will soon have to pay to access News Corp material on the Web. In Murdoch’s words:

“Quality journalism is not cheap and an industry that gives away its content is simply cannibalizing its ability to produce good reporting.”

What this means is that one of the most prolific, successful entrepenuers in the last 50 years realizes that the time is ripe for people to begin paying for content on the Web. And, since a huge portion of the population prefers to get their news in a video format, the video pay per view market will be expanded.

Pay Per View Model Gaining Acceptance

To other companies launching pay per view products, the Murdoch announcement is good news. It highlights the growing acceptance of a model where consumers pay for video content online. And the trend is growing.

Besides “hard news,” Murdoch’s properties plan to capitalize on the lure of “celebrity” news, something that has its own draw. This in turn, will forge the way for other sites to exploit the celebrity culture to generate pay-per-view profits. But news and celebrities aren’t the only subjects what are expanding into this venue.

Other Genres: Sporting Events PPV

Multi-million viewer extravaganzas like boxing and WWE wrestling matches have long been profitable in the TV world, and more recently, they have carried that success onto the Internet. But that genre has broadened, even down to the local level.

High schools, intramural leagues, and other sporting organizations have began to broadcast their games on a pay per view basis, and are making it work. Baseball, football, hockey — even swim meets are taking advantage of this technology which benefits both the broadcaster and the viewer.

From the viewer’s side, they have the ability to keep up with their favorite teams — even when they aren’t able to attend the events in person. And from the team’s perspective, it’s a way to help finance the enormous investments that are often required to participate in non-professional sports.

Other Genres: Church Services

A number of religious organizations have also begun to broadcast their services online. For their parishes, this provides an invaluable service: continuing to benefit from their church’s effort, even when they are unable to go as often as they’d like.

Again, both sides benefit by this process, especially the church’s who view it as a boon to their constant efforts to raise the funds they need to operate.

The Advantage of Reach

In the cases of church services, sporting events, news, or other media categories, one of the biggest benefits of pay per view is “reach.” That is, events can broadcast locally, but viewed internationally. For example, the guy who moves across the country, but still wants to watch his hometown team’s games. Or the woman who travels for business, but still wants to catch her local pastor’s sermons.

While this trend has been building for a while in the smaller events, the entrance of a major player like News Corporation into the game will have positive effects on the industry in general, and bodes well for companies wanting to launch a pay per view program of their own.