Am Law Founder Steven Brill Back in Journalism
Steven Brill’s plan to save journalism has morphed into a money-making joint venture.
Earlier this year, a confidential memo by the American Lawyer founder came to light that advised the New York Times to charge for its Internet content. Now Brill is teaming with two other media executives to build an automated system that could be used by newspapers and magazines to charge readers for online stories, report the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.). Their new company is called Journalism Online.
Readers of online news sites participating in Journalism Online would reach a page asking for payment, which would be processed by the company. Readers would also have the option of going directly to Journalism Online to buy a subscription to multiple sites for a fee that might be $15 a month.
“The most important thing is it’s simple to use,” Brill told the Times. “Much of the barrier to charging online is the transaction friction, as opposed to the actual cost. With this system, you’d have a single password, give your credit card number just once.”
The other executives participating in the venture are L. Gordon Crovitz, a former publisher of the Wall Street Journal, and former cable TV veteran Leo Hindery Jr.
The company’s board of advisers includes former solicitor general Ted Olson and David Boies, the Times story says. Boies’ law firm, Boies Schiller & Flexner, has been retained to negotiate licensing and royalty fees with search engines and news aggregators that use the work of Journalism Online clients.
Some commentators are expressing skepticism about whether the venture will work. Gawker says PayPal and Amazon offer a similar service, while the Business Insider questions whether the venture will have enough clients to be profitable.
