Factors influencing public attitudes toward paid online newspaper subscriptions- a field study
Document Type
Article
Source of Publication
Arab Media and Society
Publication Date
2020
Abstract
Despite the implementation of new business models in several Western media organizations, most Arab newspapers have not yet explored these models, and little is known about public attitudes towards their willingness to pay for online news. The study sought to identify factors that encourage the public to pay. It was applied to a sample of 530 newspaper consumers in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Oman. The study concluded that there are unfavorable trends in the public regarding their interest in following up on the news and did not show willingness for paying for online news. Most of them prefer to pay for entertainment materials. The study found that demographic variables such as age and income were important indicators of the public’s willingness to pay. Most respondents were not yet exposed to the paywall and anticipated difficulty in implementing the culture of paying for online news in Arab societies. They also expected that many print newspapers will disappear in the near future, and the idea of paying for online news was not seen favorably.
ISSN
Publisher
American University in Cairo
Volume
2020
Issue
30
Disciplines
Communication
Keywords
Arab Media, Business Models, Digital Environment, News Consumption, Paid News, Paywalls
Scopus ID
Recommended Citation
Darwish, E. B. and Younis, H. M., "Factors influencing public attitudes toward paid online newspaper subscriptions- a field study" (2020). All Works. 4519.
https://zuscholars.zu.ac.ae/works/4519
Indexed in Scopus
yes
Open Access
no