Herald Sun digital subscriptions to launch next Monday – two-month free trial until June 30
Herald & Weekly Times managing director Peter Blunden today announced the Herald Sun would unveil its new multi-media package alongside digital subscriptions from next Monday.
On March 12, the Herald Sun will launch the ultimate companion to its newspapers, the Herald Sun Digital Pass, with a two-month free trial available until June 30.
This pass will offer readers access to compelling new multi-media content via the website, a new mobile phone “m-site” and the popular iPad app, available whenever and wherever readers desire.
After the expiration of the free trial period, readers will be able to purchase a Herald Sun Digital Pass from $2.95 per week.
In addition, in April, the Herald Sun intends to launch a totally upgraded version of its popular iPad app.
“The expansion of our business across multiple platforms will enable us to remain competitive for the long term,” Blunden said.
The Herald Sun Digital Pass will be available to buy at heraldsun.com.au with many other subscription bundles that include the newspaper, with various price points including:
§ $2.95 per week: full digital access to the Herald Sun, website, tablet app and mobile site
§ $4.95 per week: full digital access plus newspaper delivery on Saturday and Sunday
§ $5.95 per week: full digital access plus newspaper delivery Monday to Friday
§ $8.95 per week: full digital access plus newspaper delivery every day
Blunden said existing Herald Sun 6-7 day subscribers would be given premium service.
“We will be offering these customers a complimentary 12-month Herald Sun Digital Pass in addition to their newspaper print subscription, valued at over $150,” he said.
“All 1-5 day subscribers will be offered a three-month pass and all Herald Sun readers, including our casual retail customers, will also be offered a two-month trial to experience all that a Herald Sun Digital Pass offers. ”
Holders of the Herald Sun Digital Pass will have a single login which will work online, on tablet and on mobile. The Herald Sun Digital Pass will run for four week periods, automatically renewing each time it expires.
Blunden said the “freemium” model, using a mix of free and subscription-only content, would ensure all readers continued to enjoy access to breaking news, wire stories, broad-interest stories and any content that is widely available via other digital publications.
But, through the range of digital pass subscriptions, readers would have access to specially selected premium content each day including opinion, exclusive news, sport, entertainment and analysis.
Coverage of the Herald Sun’s senior columnists including Andrew Bolt, Mark Robinson, Terry McCrann, and Susie O’Brien would only be accessible to subscribers.
A marketing campaign worth $5 million will support the launch of digital subscriptions.
Mr Blunden said the new-look website would particularly appeal to AFL fans.
“Digital pass subscribers will be able to access new SuperFooty content including Australia’s No.1 second-screen experience for AFL matches,” he said.
“We’ve built a fully interactive match centre with scores, stats, fixtures, live chats, live SuperCoach points, news, video and social media interaction.
“There is an insatiable appetite for footy coverage in Victoria, and our army of football reporters is second to none.
“We expect our improved reader interactivity via our website and mobile phone site to be even more appealing to our readers and SuperCoach players.”
From next Monday, the upgraded website at heraldsun.com.au will include a fresh new layout and enhanced functionality offering a more interactive, user-friendly and engaging experience, featuring more exclusive, in-depth content and new sections.
Pages will load faster on the site than ever before.
The TrueCrimeScene section will be anchored by veteran Victorian detective Charlie Bezzina with on-the-spot reports and analysis.
Enhanced functionality will enable greater social engagement and sharing and deliver a consistent user journey across desktop, tablet and our new mobile platforms.
With the advent of the Herald Sun m-site, Victoria’s best source of news, sport and entertainment will now be at the fingertips of people who are on the move, not always in front of a PC.
Features include all the latest information from News, SuperFooty, Sport, Entertainment and Business as well as live AFL scores and simpler, more elegant navigation and presentation, amplifying the smaller screen and load times of all pages.
Blunden said the current website was already accessed by about 700,000 UBs per month via mobile devices.
10 Comments
Talk it up. What they’re really saying is this is the end of free access to the Herald-Sun website. Thanks Rupert.
If you charge me for stuff you’ve been giving me for free, I will find another source and you will lose me. This will be an ideal opportunity for your competitors to steal your audience. I think it’s a bad move to charge your loyal users for content, maybe you should sell more advertising or charge your advertisers more so you can deliver your premium content. There is a lot of choice on the internet and consumers will find for free what you plan to offer, particularly your AFL fans. It looks like a money grab. It hasn’t worked for the AFR and it won’t work for you.
Rupert must be getting desperate.
Living on the other side of the world, this was one of the best ways in keeping in contact with the issues from my home town. But now I must look elsewhere to get this daily info, especially on the footy. You are no Aussie.
I, for one, welcome our new digital media overlords.
On a serious note, it looks like I just changed the link on my browser for my Victorian news…. it’s now called ‘The Age’.
I loved the Herakd Sun website.
Every morning I’d check the news, and then buy the paper on the way to work.
The site was easy to follow, concise, and up to date.
Whoever thought the new layout would improve their offering clearly doesn’t access the Internet very often for news- and then the overall wisdom to offer a story only to show a small part unless you login and eventually pay.
They’ve lost me and a number of people I’ve spoken to. Let’s hope the backlash is huge.
In the mean time……… There’s plenty of others.
It’s like the Herald Sun is now offering free content…..with a digital pass to pay
That’s easy enough for me, Heraldsun bookmark delete, The Age saved. Was getting the age delivered anyway since they had better deals. Now I will just browse their website instead. Time will tell if the Heraldsun can survive this. All I know is if there were more people like me the Heraldsun would be back tracking very quickly. But I could be all too late.
i will be reading the age newspaper from now and on for all footballing articles. so many friends interested in footy have already switched to the because of this. shame on you herald sun, this will cost you
The Herald Sun was never far from the Truth trash anyhow. It’s a media outlet for the lower and middle classes who seem to love watching dead cow hide (plastic?) being tossed around a paddock – Oh the thrill!
This new digital schtick will not work for such a shitty paper. And it’s not rocket science to work out (demographically) why either.
I recently moved house and my parents-in-law gave heaps of Herald Sun papers to help pack stuff. It made me ill to know that people actually paid money to read such biased triviality and hoot over a ball that’s tossed between two sticks.
Good riddance to bad rubbish being freely available anyhow.
The Herald Sun Digital campaign is no ploy to charge you to use it simply access to new and different content than otherwise available… the Age is doing the same thing https://theage.digitaleditions.com.au/key-features.php maybe read the story a little better next time folks!