The free vs. paid-for content debate was re-ignited recently when it was revealed that The Times and Sunday Times websites will charge £1 per day or £2 per week to access their content from June. Last September, News Corp CEO and chairman Rupert Murdoch got the ball rolling when he unveiled plans to extend the Wall Street Journal’s online paywall to Blackberry and iPhone users.

We are used to consuming content online for free and once we’re used to getting something for free, it’s very hard to start charging for it. Obviously the success of numerable freemium models out there proves that a hybrid model can be a sustainable model, but by putting up a pay wall (predominantly in the face of Google), News International are taking a big risk.

Firstly, an awful lot of traffic is generated from twitter links and blogs and people will cease to link to Times and Sunday Times stories in the knowledge that only those who are paid subscribers would be able to view the content. Secondly, the reading habits of those who view news online tend to consume shorter stories online and read the longer features in the actual paper. Given that online news is effectively a commodity it would suggest that users are far more likely to read the news on the BBC or alternative sites rather than pay to view content on the Times. Not good news for their ad sales team.

Also, publishers have been moving heavily into mobile content where users are more willing to pay than online (the success of the Guardian iPhone app is testament to this). Plus, tablets such as the Kindle or iPad offer publishers a big opportunity to create new revenue streams to replace dwindling print revenues. A more prudent move might have been to concentrate efforts and investment on this big growth sector rather than trying to turn the tanker that is free online content.

The Times does have a strong brand and will certainly convince some of its readership to pay for the online content, but I suspect the move will do more harm than good to its business.

You can meet Steve Wing, Guardian’s head of mobile at Camerjam’s M-Publishing event on 9 June in London

Augmented Reality (AR) platform provider Layar announced today the possibility for producers and publishers of AR content to offer their experiences for sale. In addition, Layar reached agreement with one of the top 3 mobile handset manufacturers for a global distribution partnership, which will bring Layar capable phones to the mass market. This will enable tens of millions of people to experience Layar AR content on their mobile phones in 2010.

The Layar platform allows brands, game developers, publishers and producers to engage with customers through the creation of rich immersive real world experiences. 375 layers have already been published, with over 1200 layers also in development. More than 2000 organizations in 70 countries are benefiting from the unique capabilities of the Layar platform, developing great content.

As of mid March 2010, all Layar producers and publishers will be able to generate a return from their investment in AR. They can offer both free and paid content through the Layar platform. Layar will also facilitate global mobile payment processing and distribution in all currencies enabling producers to fully focus on content - without concerns of mass market distribution, multi-platform development, or financial administration.

Layar continues to strengthen its position in the Augmented Reality market by securing EUR 2,5 million (US $3,4 million) in funding by Sunstone Capital and Prime Technology Ventures whilst also surpassing the 1 million user mark. With this, Layar opens the door for mainstream business in the new medium of Augmented Reality.

According to figures released by the IAB this week, mobile can boost online advertising effectiveness. OK this is not be surprising to those in the mobile industry, but it is certainly welcome news with click through rates up 150 percent and brand recognition up by 43 percent. The IAB partnered with research agency Brand Driver, mobile agency Mobext, part of MPG Media Contacts and financial provider Nationwide Building Society, who ran a series of mobile and online display ads promoting Home Insurance.

The campaign, which ran simultaneously over the mobile operator sites of 3, O2, Orange, T mobile and Vodafone, and the mobile and web portals of MSN and Sky, found that:

* When exposed to ads across online and mobile, recognition was 43% greater than those exposed just to the online component.

* Consideration of Nationwide Home Insurance increased by 24% when respondents had been exposed to both the mobile and online ads.

* Spontaneous brand awareness was 50% higher amongst those who had seen mobile ads than those who had seen no Nationwide advertising, and increased to 114% when the sample were exposed to both online and mobile.

* Advertising across both platforms increased performance - the click-through rate online was 150% higher amongst those that were exposed to - and recalled - the mobile ad.

The study also identified 3 key trends for the mobile internet relating to consumer attitudes and behaviour, which marketers should be incorporating into their 2010 communications strategies: targeting, user experience and brand-building.

CALL FOR SPEAKERS - CLICK HERE FOR FULL DETAILS

Following the successful launch of the Mobile Squared Roadshow in November 2009, I am delighted to announce that we are rolling the Roadshow out across 4 continents, starting with Asia in Sinapore in May 2010. Confirmed dates are:

• 5-6 May 2010, Singapore
• 1 July 2010, New York
• 29-30 September 2010, London
• 7 December 2010, Cape Town

The mobileSQUARED Roadshow’s strategy is to actively reach out to the non-mobile sectors and attract delegates from all industries. And that’s exactly what we do, as our delegate breakdown testifies. We want speakers with a pedigree in delivering exceptional mobile campaigns and strategies, with something compelling and relevant to communicate to an audience made up of mobile and non-mobile delegates.

Please contact me on james@camerjam.com if you would like to submit a speaking proposal for any of the 2010 Roadshows

More details here