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Microsoft Adds Monthly Subscription Plan to Office for iPad

A number of software developers have begun adopting subscription payment models, from Adobe to Microsoft. And since the previous one-time payment models acclimated consumers to doling out hundreds of dollars in one chunk, many SaaS providers assumed an annual subscription rate would be preferable. But it turns out that many SaaS providers have had to adjust that idea and have begun offering monthly subscription plans, and Microsoft is the latest software developer to join the fold. The company announced…

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Magazine Subscriptions via Text May Pave Way for Mobile Payments for Digital Content

A new payment service called Boku is making it possible for consumers to subscribe to print magazines via text message. But the technology might be best employed for subscriptions to digital publications in the future. San Francisco-based Boku is teaming up with UK publisher IPC Media to place print ads that ask would-be subscribers to text a code to a number to subscribe to the print publication. The consumer receives a confirmation text with a link directing…

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LinkedIn’s Company Pages Let You Target Professionals and Customize Posts

LinkedIn just introduced a new feature for its Company Pages that will allow organization to target and customize posts. For those unaware, LinkedIn can be a powerful social media platform for thought leaders and B2B businesses. Over the years, the company has encouraged users to optimize profiles and feed its content stream with “influencer” posts (which, apparently, anyone can create now). But the new tool on Company Pages indicates a slight shift by the social media giant, one that is…

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MLB.tv Celebrates 12 Years with Promotion for $12 ‘Annual’ Subscription

Despite popular belief that paid content is a new phenomenon, MLB.com celebrates 12 years this week of offering subscription-supported live streaming of Major League Baseball games. To honor that milestone, MLB.tv has created a special $12/year promotion, which site visitors can purchase for themselves or as a gift. We like the fact that MLB.tv is taking advantage of its anniversary to offer a catchy promotion (this would be less enticing for a high-priced site trying to offer a $1200/year…

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Amazon Beats Google to Twitch Acquisition for $970 Million

Contrary to earlier rumors, Amazon has just closed a deal to purchase Twitch, a subscription site that streams live and on-demand playing on video games, for $970 million. Previous rumors had Google shopping the site for $1 billion for YouTube. In July, more than 55 million unique visitors viewed more than 15 billion minutes of content on Twitch produced by more than 1 million broadcasters, including individual gamers, pro players, publishers, developers, media outlets, conventions and…

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Financial Times Launches ‘Antenna’ to Sort Social Media for Users

In a slight turn of events, The Financial Times is showing social media the value of legacy news brands. FT Antenna, the financial newspaper’s newest service, aggregates and curates the most important news from Twitter in which FT readers might be interested. An algorithm makes sure each tweet is “double whitelisted” – i.e., from a trusted source and links to a trusted website, according to an article on The Media Briefing. In essence, The Financial Times is providing the…

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Google Names New Subscription Music Service, Spotify Launches in Canada

There’s been rumors for months that Google is planning on launching a subscription music service on YouTube, and now the rumor mill is saying the search giant plans to name the service “YouTube Music Key.” The service will “offer ad-free playback, the ability to save songs and videos for offline listening, and an audio-only interface for when you’re multitasking or want to have music on in the background, all for $9.99 per month,” reports The Verge. Google…

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Washington Post Flirts with Placing Amazon ‘Buy Now’ Button in Article – Should You?

There was a blip in the Twitterverse last week when The Washington Post temporarily added a “Buy Now” button in line with article text for a story on the new cover art for the children’s classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The move sparked concern from some, but gratitude by others, for what seemed to be an in-article advertisement for Amazon. WaPo quickly removed the button, stating that while the news site does place Amazon Buy Now buttons…

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News Corp Garners $2.86 Billion from Subscriptions in 2014

During its first full year earnings call since splitting off from 21st Century Fox, News Corp announced that it had generated $8.57 billion in total revenues in 2014, down 4% from $8.89 billion in 2013. Subscriptions and circulation for the company’s print and digital products accounted for $2.86 billion, or 33% of total revenues. Subscription revenues rose by $1 million in 2014 from $2.67 billion the previous year, a 0.3% increase. Advertising revenue fell 7.5%. Yet curiously,…

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Overlays are #1 Opt-In Tactic for Growing Email Lists, Report Says

Home-grown email lists are far more valuable to marketers than lists bought from third parties. But what’s the best way to grow your email list organically? According to the executives surveyed for our Email Marketing Benchmark Report, lightbox overlays are the #1 tactic for gaining opt-in email addresses. In fact, 90% of respondents said overlays were somewhat to highly effective (see chart below). On-page sign-up boxes and free downloads were rated equally as effective  as overlays (90% for each, but…

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