In the news: A recent Digiday.com piece explores how publishers might capitalize on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Cryptocurrency is here to stay, and Time is among the first publishers to test the waters. Last week, reports Kayleigh Barber of Digiday, the publisher started accepting 31 different types of cryptocurrency from subscribers. “Current subscribers will not be asked to switch to the crypto payment options, according to Maya Draisin, svp of progress marketing,” says Barber “Instead, this method allows her team to introduce the Time brand to native crypto users and give them accessible payment options. She hopes it gives current subscribers that are ‘crypto curious’ an entry point to see crypto usage in a real-world application.”

The move comes with a unique set of risks. The cryptocurrency market tends to be volatile; Barber cites the recent $10,000 plunge Bitcoin recently took in a single week. But Time seems willing to take that risk and others. Barber says: “Time is also investing in crypto by growing its technology team under chief technology officer Bharat Krish. Since joining the company a year ago in May, the team has more than doubled to 40 people, many of whom do not come from traditional media backgrounds, but from companies like Uber, Google and Amazon.” Read more here.

Also Notable

Tribune Publishing Bid Hits Snag

Billionaire Stewart Bainum Jr. has just over a week to resubmit his bid for news publishing giant Tribune, reports Rick Edmonds this week on Poynter.org. But Bainum faces a steep obstacle in his quest for investors, says Edmonds: “No one seems to want to buy the Chicago Tribune,” the company’s largest newspaper property. If Bainum is unsuccessful in his bid, Tribune will go to hedge fund Alden Global Capital for a reported $630 billion. And, per Edmonds, time is running out: “There is no formal deadline for a counterbid, but [a] source close to Bainum said that, practically, a deal would need to be completed by the end of next week if it is to be considered.” Read more here.

US Daily Print Titles Hit Hard by Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic has dealt some resounding blows to daily print publications in the US. Earlier this month, William Turvill of the Press Gazette reported on some of the more notable losses last year. USA Today print circulation fell by 60 percent after the country went into lockdown last spring, says Turvill. (In other news, the newspaper just launched a paywall on its news content this week.) Other major newspapers such as the New York Times and Wall Street Journal also saw falling circulation in summer 2020. “On average, the largest ten weekday newspapers in the US experienced a circulation fall of 20% in the six months to September 2020, Alliance for Audited Media (AAM) figures show,” reports Torvill. Read more specifics about how each of the major newspapers fared here.

Hearst Dives into Data Journalism

Data journalism is on the menu at Hearst. Evelyn Mateos of Editor & Publisher discusses in a recent piece how the publisher is structuring its efforts: “Currently, Hearst has a Central Interactive Team (or DevHub, for short), which is operated out of the San Francisco Chronicle. The team of seven is under the leadership of Tim O’Rourke, director of product and strategy. It ... creates interactive graphics, data-driven stories and visual projects for all five of Hearst’s newspaper markets in San Francisco, Houston, San Antonio, Connecticut, and Albany, N.Y.” The projects have been largely successful -- enough so that Hearst is poised to hire 15 data journalists, reports Mateos. Read more here.

Reuters Launches Paywall

This month, Reuters started putting news content behind an online paywall, reports Kim Lyons of The Verge. “[Reuters] will let users read five stories a month for free and plans to charge $34.99 a month for a subscription,” she reports. The paywall comes as part of a larger revenue strategy by the news outlet. “Reuters said it generates half of its revenue from its largest client, the financial data firm Refinitiv, and also makes money from online advertising,” Lyons says. “The company says it has redesigned its website with a ‘professional audience’ in mind and plans investment in segments like legal news and live streams of its event.” Read more here.

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