We’ll spare you the spin and tell you straight out, we’re going to have to start charging for access to radioinfo. We know it sucks but we can’t keep running the site at a loss – we are a business after all.
In fact we’ve already had some email on this from subscribers. We are pleasantly surprised at the number of ecouraging reponses. However some have expressed disapointment – as one would expect.
We are grateful for those who offered courteous and constructive advice – all of which has been taken on board. We will answer most of those comments over the next couple of weeks and act upon viable suggestions.
The first suggestions that we’ve decided to implement is to keep the jobs section FREE OF CHARGE. Also, current news headlines will remain FREE.
The new fee for a year’s subscription will be just $3.30 per week (inc GST) and will come into force at the start of the new financial year, July 1st, 2003.
Sure it’s dearer than free, but considerably cheaper than some other hard copy publications. Mediaweek, for example, (48 weeks p.a.) costs over $13 per issue. Jocks Journal, which comes out every second week, costs almost twice as much. Even B&T costs $179 per year.
Radioinfo will cost just $3.30 per week (including GST) with the site’s usual 24 hour access to a continuous flow of news, jobs, show prep and other information – as it happens.
There is also a range of other rates for those who don’t want or need full access to the whole site for a whole year. Here’s the complete rate card:
One week $11
Three Months $66
Twelve Months $156
You can opt to pay monthly @ $15 per month by direct debit.
Note: All costs are inclusive of GST and should be tax deductible for those working in or connected with the radio industry or media in general. Check with your accountant.
Payments can be made online by Visa, Mastercard or Bankcard through the NAB’s secure online banking system, providing instant access to the site as soon as the card details have been submitted to the bank. Or you can send us a cheque.
Still, you may ask, why start paying for radioinfo now if you weren’t paying for it in the past? Well, for a start, you might miss it if it were gone, and as we said we can’t afford to keep running it at a loss – a loss that continues to grow as our subscriber list grows. By charging for use we can turn this unsustainable situation around to the way it should be.
Secondly, we intend to spend most of any surplus money on improvements to the site so that it becomes more valuable to you as a professional business to business resource. In fact we’ve already started posting a new “On This Day” style of information package to beef up the “show prep” page. And through our relationship with Nielsen Media Research, we give you access to more ratings information sooner than any other media outlet.
Continued site improvements will even feature the odd downloadable sound bite along with some Australian factoids with which to wow your listeners.
Remember, the changes will take place from July 1st, 2003. So, plan for the subscription in your next financial year budget. In the meantime, if you would like to comment on these changes – particularly if you have ideas about how to improve the site and any added features you’d like to see, please email us at [email protected]