Ten papers chosen for Google digital subscriptions lab

The Local Media Association has announced the ten newspapers that have been selected to participate in the Google News Initiative Digital Subscriptions Lab.

The GNI Digital Subscriptions Lab, announced in March in partnership with Local Media Association and FTI Consulting, is a six-month program that will focus on finding a path forward for reader revenue strategies, according to LMA.

The papers are El Nuevo Dia (Puerto Rico), The Baltimore Sun, The Buffalo News, The Columbus Dispatch, The Houston Chronicle, The Idaho Press, The Portland Press Herald (Maine), The Post and Courier (Charleston, South Carolina), The Southeast Missourian and The Toronto Star.

“We invited 21 newspapers that were having success with digital subscriptions to apply for this unique opportunity,” said LMA President Nancy Lane. “We were impressed by the letters from their CEOs and the work going on at these companies. In the end, the judges chose ten that came with a willingness to experiment and a commitment from the highest levels in their company.”

The group consists of small, medium and large publishers. Diverse selection is important to figuring out models that work across all markets, from large metros to smaller communities, according to LMA. Judges looked for newspapers that were growing their digital subscription business and were ready to fast track it to the next level, LMA said.

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