EXCLUSIVE: The Australian Financial Review's iPad app will be supported by five major sponsors at launch in April, as the newspaper claims a rise in digital subscribers following a change to its pricing model.
Sponsors of the iPad app will include Commonwealth Bank, Virgin Australia, Land Rover, Cisco and a fifth brand which is yet to be confirmed.
Financial Review Group chief executive Brett Clegg said online subscriptions have increased from 8,200 to 14,400, as of Monday 5 March.
The rise is attributed to a 76% jump in existing print subscribers who have signed on for digital access to become bundled customers, and a 36% increase in new digital-only subscribers since 12 December 2011.
Clegg said these numbers are already four to five times above early expectations. He told AdNews: “It's refreshing to know there is demand for our journalism in the digital world. We held a fair degree of trepidation prior to the changes in our subscription model because we had previously priced ourselves out of the market for such a long period, but we're literally enjoying anywhere between 50 and 100 new sign-ups a day. To say we are delighted - at least relieved - is an understatement."
Accompanying the growth in subscribers is a bump in online advertising, Clegg claims, which has “accelerated” since the price changes. “Growth in advertising online is well into the double-digit range. We expect that to continue in line with traffic and subscriber growth. Most pleasing is the enormous uplift in the breadth of advertisers. New clients are now seeking to access our audience both in print and in the digital environment.”
Clegg said keeping the price of the new app within current subscription rates was in line with the AFR's new philosophy: “When launching our revised paywall prices, we made a philosophical decision that if you are a print subscriber, you should expect by right to get access to our journalism where, when and how you want it. Charging our iPad at a premium runs counter to the philosophical leap that we have made.”
This article first appeared in the 9 March 2012 edition of AdNews. Click here to subscribe for more news, features and opinion.
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