Jacksonville, North Carolina's Daily News transitioning to online platform that will require users to subscribe to print newspaper or purchase digital subscription to have unlimited access to online content

Mathew Kearney

JACKSONVILLE, North Carolina , November 13, 2013 (Daily News LP) – The Daily News is embracing a business model put in place at nearly 500 daily newspapers across the country.

Starting this morning, JDNews.com is transitioning to a platform that will require users to subscribe to the print newspaper or purchase a digital subscription to have unlimited access to online content.

"We believe our content has value, as our thousands of subscribers have proven for years," said Daily News Publisher Elliott Potter. "We are moving away from giving our content away on one hand while charging for it on the other."

If you subscribe to the print edition of the Daily News, you will continue to have access to JDNews.com at no additional charge. You will, however, be asked to register on the site.

"All our current subscribers have to do to continue accessing our online information is complete a simple registration process at no charge," Potter said.

Non-subscribers will have access to five articles per month before being required to subscribe. Full digital access is $9.95 a month and can be purchased online via the third-party vendor Press+. The subscription screen will initially show up after three articles are accessed.

Print subscriptions, which include full digital access, range from $13.85 per month for Sunday-only delivery to $18.40 per month for seven-day-a-week delivery of the print edition, as well as complete digital access. They can be purchased online or by calling 910-577-7323.

Non-subscribers will continue to have access to certain news items online. The home page at JDNews.com and section home pages, for example, will not be metered.

The Daily News also is debuting a new online section, JDNewstream, that can be freely accessed by subscribers and non-subscribers alike. This section will house official news releases from area agencies and governments, as well as breaking news and information on items such as road closures or weather alerts that could immediately impact readers.

Rick Martin, publisher of the Halifax Media Group's North Region, which includes The Daily News, was in Jacksonville on Tuesday as preparations for the move continued.

"No one covers local governments or your schools like we do. No one covers prep sports like we do. On a daily basis, we report on the top issues that impact you, your neighbors and your community," Martin said. "There is value to our news delivered online, and we can't continue to ignore that."

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