What’s It Worth to You? The Free Model Versus Subscriptions
Miss the sixth season premiere of Lost? No worries, you can still go to Hulu and download parts one and two for free. For now, anyway. Recent news of Hulu’s contemplation of a paid subscription model has viewers wondering how much longer the free ride will last. While nothing is set in stone yet, the move to pay-per-play may allow Hulu to expand its reach and functionality even more than is presently enjoys. While Hulu reports more than a billion views of videos they house in December, 2009, visitors are limited to how they can be watched. YouTube offers applications for smart phones, and video rental giant Netflix permits streams downloaded only to play on televisions, while Hulu offers neither amenity. Speculation remains that revenue from paid subscriptions will change that, but it also begs the question: is it worth paying for?
Where free content versus paid is concerned, you’re likely to hear two schools of thought: 1) What you have to offer isn’t worth anything unless you charge for it; and 2) If you expect to make money in any business, you have to “give it away.” I know authors who devote time to crafting sample stories for distribution to entice readers to buy their backlists, and it’s common for ministries to offer gifts like rosaries, books and calendars in the hope that the investment will return with donations. One might look at such small tokens as promotional material that can’t compare to, say, free unlimited streaming of movies or entire digital novels to download, and therefore conclude “freebies” aren’t very profitable.
However, assuming sites like Hulu move to a pay model, will it inspire greater piracy of data? With the rise in Kindle and eBook reader usage, it appears book piracy has risen steadily along with it, leaving some publishers skittish about releasing digital formats for fear of losing royalties (not that it really matters, for it’s been proven that solely print books have made it to the Web for eager hands to grab).
Is there value in giving away information as opposed to charging it? Would you be tempted to go elsewhere for content to avoid a monthly subscription? Would you prefer to subscribe to a trusted brand with mediocre content rather than a little-known entity with a better offering? Has there been an instance where offering free content has boosted your revenue? We’d like to hear about it!
