NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 16, 2005--The New York Times
announced today a new online offering called TimesSelect, which for a
modest fee will provide exclusive access to Op-Ed and news columnists
on NYTimes.com, easy and in-depth access to The Times's online
archives, early access to select articles on the site, as well as
other exciting features.
While most of the news, features and multi-media on NYTimes.com
will remain free and available to users, the work of Op-Ed columnists
and some of the best known voices from the news side of The Times and
The International Herald Tribune (IHT) will be available only to
TimesSelect subscribers beginning in September. Home-delivery
subscribers will automatically receive TimesSelect as part of their
benefits. TimesSelect will be priced at $49.95 for an annual
subscription.
"This is a great offering," said Martin Nisenholtz, senior vice
president of digital operations. "TimesSelect combines the insights
and ideas of distinctive voices from The Times and IHT with seamless
access to our archives in an unprecedented way and at a terrific price
point. At the same time, by keeping the majority of the site free, we
will continue to scale the business through strong advertising
growth."
This offering marks an important step forward in the Company's
overall digital strategy. Since the Times Company launched its digital
operations in the mid 90s, it has had three business objectives for
them - profitability, scale and revenue diversification. In 2001 the
Company's digital properties achieved profitability and earlier this
year, the acquisition of About, Inc. increased their scale. The launch
of TimesSelect further diversifies their revenue base.
TimesSelect's features include:
-- Special Voices - Access to some of the most influential and
insightful voices today, including David Brooks, Maureen Dowd,
Tom Friedman, Bob Herbert, Nicholas Kristof, Paul Krugman,
Frank Rich, John Tierney, Dave Anderson, Peter Applebome,
Harvey Araton, Dan Barry, Clyde Haberman, Gretchen Morgenson,
Joe Nocera, Floyd Norris, Joyce Purnick, William Rhoden,
Selena Roberts, George Vescey, Roger Cohen, and John Vinocur.
-- TimesPast - Easy and in-depth access to The Times's extensive
archives.
-- Exclusive Multi-Media - Unique features for TimesSelect
subscribers including audio and photo essays, video and
podcasts.
-- TimesFile - A new tool that helps readers tag and organize
articles from The Times.
-- Ahead of The Times - A first look at articles that will appear
in sections such as Real Estate, The New York Times Magazine,
Travel and Sunday Arts.
-- TimesNewstracker - An e-mail alert that enables readers to
track news important to them. This successful product is
currently sold separately but will be included as part of this
new suite of benefits.
The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company
with 2004 revenues of $3.3 billion, includes The New York Times, the
International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 16 other newspapers,
eight network-affiliated television stations, two New York City radio
stations and more than 40 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com
and About.com. For the fifth consecutive year, the Company was ranked
No. 1 in the publishing industry in Fortune's 2005 list of America's
Most Admired Companies. The Company's core purpose is to enhance
society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news,
information and entertainment.
This press release can be downloaded from www.nytco.com
CONTACT: The New York Times Company
Catherine J. Mathis, 212-556-1981
mathis@nytimes.com
or
Toby Usnik, 212-556-4425
usnikt@nytimes.com
SOURCE: The New York Times Company
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