Edweek.org Serves as Paid Content Case Study on Media Center Morph Blog

Reston, VA -- The Media Center, in partnership with the nonprofit publisher of Education Week and Teacher Magazine, has launched an experiment in corporate transparency. Edweek.org will switch from a free-registration site to one where a subscription will be needed to access premium content. This change in direction will play out in The Media Center's blog, morph (http://mediacenter.blogs.com/morph/). Edweek.org's project team, including Education Week's editor and publisher, marketing director, advertising director and online director, will document and explain the decision-making process leading up to the public launch of the subscription part of the site this fall, along the way inviting public and professional scrutiny and feedback for each step.

Education Week publisher Virginia B. Edwards agreed to allow edweek.org to be a transparent, ongoing case study for The Media Center at a time when the free- vs.-pay debate is reaching heightened urgency. The case study is meant to be a public service to the global online publishing industry, and also to generate insights and ideas for the edweek.org process from outside media practitioners addressing the same issues.

Nielsen/NetRatings recently reported that 21 percent of online users who also read newspapers now prefer to read newspaper articles online. Some companies, such as America Online and CNN, are freeing up content, while others are erecting price barriers where before there were none: The New York Times is moving ahead with plans to charge $49.95 for a package that includes its archives and op-ed columnists, while Spain's El Pais is retreating from a paid model to a mix of free and paid content. The edweek.org case study will serve as an arena for exploring the advantages and pitfalls of each of these choices.

"We want to reach as wide an audience as possible, and a significant part of the audience we want to reach is other decision makers who will have to grapple in the next year or two with how to charge, what to charge, if to charge," said Gary Kebbel, interim executive producer of edweek.org. "We really want to help people along this path, because it ain't easy, there are no right answers and the decisions are fraught with danger for the future of the enterprise. At the same time, we know we will benefit from a wider discussion of our ideas."

The Media Center welcomed the chance for its morph blog to host the dialog and case study. "Edweek's experiment in participatory media is particularly appropriate for our morph audience," said Media Center director Andrew Nachison. "Our global audience includes editors, publishers, executives, entrepreneurs, researchers and technologists, and their varied perspectives should provide a diverse sounding board for the strategy and tactics contemplated by edweek.org."

Morph is an online forum dedicated to exploring how society informs itself, and how media, either empowered or disrupted by technology, can contribute to or drive social change.

The case study kicked off with initial posts from:

• Gary Kebbel, Interim Executive Producer of edweek.org - An Interactive Case Study: Edweek.org to Switch From a Free to a Subscriber Site, June 20, 2005

• Andrew Nachison, Director of The Media Center - Mass vs. Niche, Free vs. Paid: The March Toward Open Media, June 21, 2005

• Virginia B. Edwards, Editor and Publisher of Education Week and Teacher Magazine - Decision to Change Edweek.org to a Subscriber Site Started With User Data and Ended With Years of Planning, June 24, 2005

To read these posts and to join the discussion, please go to:
http://mediacenter.blogs.com/morph/education_week/index.html

About The Media Center

The Media Center is a nonprofit think tank committed to building a better-informed society in a connected world. The Media Center helps individuals and organizations worldwide acquire intelligence and apply insight into the future role and use of media and enabling technology. Through research, education and unique learning experiences, The Media Center helps leaders in media, technology, academia, philanthropies, NGOs, nonprofit and other businesses understand the challenges of a changing multimedia world. The Media Center is a separately funded division of The American Press Institute, an independent, not-for-profit educational center with headquarters in Reston, Virginia. Through its global, multi-disciplinary network of researchers and leading thinkers, The Media Center inspires and agitates dialog and activities exploring the intersection of media, technology and society. Media Center research and programs provide knowledge and strategic insights for personal, professional and organizational growth. For more about The Media Center, go to: www.mediacenter.org.

About Editorial Projects in Education

Editorial Projects in Education, a national, nonprofit publisher in Bethesda, Md., is dedicated to producing and disseminating essential news and information for K-12 audiences and markets. In addition to edweek.org, EPE publishes Education Week and Teacher Magazine. Through its Research Center, EPE publishes two influential annual reports, Quality Counts and Technology Counts. Edweek.org also houses an education jobs recruitment center. For more about EPE, go to: www.educationweek.net

Media Contact:

Gloria Pan
Communications Director, The Media Center at API
11690 Sunrise Valley Drive
Reston, VA 20191-1498
(703) 715-3301
gpan@mediacenter.org
www.mediacenter.org