Publishers launch ‘consent or pay’ walls

News publishers Mail Online, The Independent, the Daily Mirror, and the Daily Express have begun requiring readers in the U.K. to pay for access to their websites if they do not consent to the use of third-party cookies and targeted advertising. Some publishers have already adopted similar “consent or pay” approaches in Germany.

Last week, “consent or pay” walls began appearing across the websites of the Mirror and the Daily Express – both owned by Reach. The walls offer users in the U.K. the option to allow tracking and access content for free or to reject it and pay for a “Privacy Plus” subscription for £1.99 per month.

The Daily Mail is offering its U.K. audience a similar choice, charging £2.70 a month for its “Mail Essential” ad-free version, and The Independent has priced its own “Independent Ad-Free” offering at £4.

Readers who pay for the cookie-free experiences may still see advertising, but the publishers say there will be no targeted advertising or sharing of users’ data with advertisers.

“We are asking readers who do not want their cookies used for ad tracking and personalized advertising to support our journalism another way – paying for an advert-free experience instead,” reads The Independent’s explanation of the program in its FAQ.

The motivation for the “consent or pay” approach is clear: Publishers can monetize users who consent to the use of cookies much more effectively than those who do not, and strict rules governing cookie consent coupled with growing consumer awareness of online privacy is prompting fewer users across Europe to accept their use. The Guardian estimated last year that one-third of its readers declined cookies, for example.

Meanwhile, major publishers say they’re now doubling down on subscriptions and other direct audience revenue streams as monetizing their audiences via advertising becomes increasingly difficult and various other challenges to their businesses mount. Many believe robust subscription revenue bases are becoming increasingly important for maintaining viable businesses as the media landscape shifts quickly around them. 

Against that backdrop, publishers are giving their audiences increasingly clear choices about how they’d prefer to transact with their sites. In the case of consent or pay, that choice boils down to “pay with your data, or pay with your money.” Others are experimenting with micropayments to give users the option to pay on a per-article basis if they prefer.

Tactics such as consent or pay and micropayments could help publishers eke out some incremental revenue, but some publishers say they’re ultimately hoping they’ll help drive sales of recurring subscriptions. As discussed on the latest episode of The Toolkits Show, publishers are actively looking for ways to build direct paying relationships with more casual readers and are increasingly open to experimenting with tools and tactics such as micropayments and consent or pay walls if they can help them to do so.

In March, the U.K.’s privacy regulator the Information Commissioner’s Office called for views on the consent or pay model, saying “in principle data protection law does not prohibit” the approach, but that “any organization considering such a model must be careful to ensure that consent to processing of personal information for personalized advertising has been freely given”. In practice that may mean offering paid access at a price point low enough that consumers don’t feel they have no choice but to agree to use of their data.

Debates about the merits and limitations of subscription models for publishers continue in some corners, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that publishers with effective reader revenue strategies are faring better in the current climate than those without. There’s a growing belief among many publishers that strong subscription revenue will be crucial for maintaining viable businesses as the monetization landscape continues to shift quickly around them.