The Newsday paywall story that isn’t

There are a lot of people jumping up and down about the news that Newsday only got 35 subscribers to its behind-the-paywall Web site after three months, especially in light of the news that, like someone returning to a bad relationship once again, the New York Times will be returning to a pay model again soon. (This time, in a “freemium” model that actually seems pretty reasonable.)

So, three months later, how many people have signed up to pay $5 a week, or $260 a year, to get unfettered access to newsday.com?

The answer: 35 people. As in fewer than three dozen. As in a decent-sized elementary-school class.

The web site redesign and relaunch cost the Dolans $4 million, according to Mr. Jimenez. With those 35 people, they’ve grossed about $9,000.

In that time, without question, web traffic has begun to plummet, and, certainly, advertising will follow as well.

Of course, there are a few caveats. Anyone who has a newspaper subscription is allowed free access; anyone who has Optimum Cable, which is owned by the Dolans and Cablevision, also gets it free. Newsday representatives claim that 75 percent of Long Island either has a subscription or Optimum Cable.

“We’re the freebie newsletter that comes with your HBO,” sniffed one Newsday reporter.

Mr. Jimenez was in no mood to apologize. “That’s 35 more than I would have thought it would have been,” said Mr. Jimenez to the assembled staff, according to five interviews with Newsday staffers.

“Given the number of households in our market that have access to Newsday’s Web site as a result of other subscriptions, it is no surprise that a relatively modest number have chosen the pay option,” said a Cablevision spokeswoman.

Those are pretty big caveats. The number of people in Long Island that don’t have a Newsday subscription or a Cablevision hook-up is pretty small. And while Newsday staffers may believe otherwise, the rest of the world really doesn’t care about their coverage of national or international news.

And that Web site usage is dropping off because it’s a terrible Web site. It looks like a poorly thought-out site for a CW television station, not a site promoting print news.

The Newsday paywall experience is more about what happens if you have good penetration with other subscription models and a worst-in-show Web site, not the viability, or lack thereof, of paywalls.

(And really, New York Observer? You’re going to take shots at any other paper, while printing yours on pink, excuse me, salmon newsprint? Really?)

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