A paywall is a system that prevents Internet users from accessing webpage content (most notably news content and scholarly publications) without a paid subscription. There are both "hard" and "soft" paywalls in use. "Hard" paywalls allow minimal to no access to content without subscription, while "soft" paywalls allow more flexibility in what users can view without subscribing. Newspapers have been implementing paywalls on their websites to increase their revenue which has been diminishing due to a decline in print subscriptions and advertising revenue.
While paywalls are used to bring in extra revenue for companies by charging for online content, they have also been used to increase the number of print subscribers. Some newspapers offer access to online content including delivery of a Sunday print edition at a lower price point than online access alone. News sites such as BostonGlobe.com and NYTimes.com use this tactic because it increases both their online revenue and their print...
