We know a little more about The Daily Advertiser's new paywall, which goes up June 1, but we still don't know how much it will cost to get the print edition and access stories online. The Daily Advertiser's new president and publisher's letter is appearing in your mailbox this week if you're a current subscriber, but no matter how many times you read it, you still won't know how much your subscription rate is going up. Written by Karen J. Lincoln, the letter details a variety of features starting June 1, like a daily e-newspaper delivered to your email.
You can view an exact digital replica of the print edition - delivered to your email every day by 5 a.m. Flip the pages, scan the headlines and read the stories! No matter where you are, The Daily Advertiser is right there with you, keeping you connected to what's happening at home.
And the paper will be offering live feeds and alerts for your tablet and smartphone (see details below).
OK, so that's new (presumably) and sounds kind of cool. But what's it going to cost? Good luck on that one.
The letter does state that this "privilege" of full access to theadvertiser.com will be exclusively for subscribers.
That's why they call it a paywall. You'll soon have to pay for what you want to read online, and the cost of the print edition is going up, too.
Good luck just getting through via the 1-800 number on the letter or the paper's direct local line. Since the automated answering system does not have an option to reach the publisher, who we hoped to interview for this story, The Independent waited while being "transferred to an attendant," only to twice hear: "Your call cannot be completed at this time. Please try again later. Good-bye."
So we gave up.
One Daily Advertiser subscriber, however, did not give up. Below is a partial note we received from said daily reader:
Called the 1-800 number; after several minutes I spoke to a human.
Ok, back and forth with the Daily Ad. rep and the word "CANCEL" constantly coming out my mouth and also explaining to Melanie (the Daily Ad woman) that THE LETTER I received is not clear as to what my monthly fee will be after the promotional period, whatever the hell date that is. Melanie asked to put me on hold, that was for about 2 minutes. I think she was with her supervisor reading THE LETTER.
Melanie then came back on the line and stated that she will keep my subscription at the $13.29 per month for an additional 6 months, "until you can find out what the NEW monthly charge will be." Melanie said that "until you can find out what the NEW monthly rate will be," she, Melanie, couldn't tell me what my new monthly rate will be?
You know, I am not surprised she said that and couldn't tell me the new rate. Remember this, my friend, is the Daily Advertiser. I think no one knows. I asked for a confirmation number and Melanie told me she would email it to me.
The confirmation email did come, though it was not a confirmation of the six-month promo price and the "new" amount referenced is the reader's old amount:
Thank you for being a subscriber to The Daily Advertiser.
Your subscription fee has been changed for your Monday Sunday delivery. Your new amount of $13.29, less any applicable credits, will automatically be deducted from your designated EZ Pay account every month on the 1st of the month. If at any time you wish to make a change to your account, simply contact us at 800-259-8852.
For your convenience, you can always access your subscription account online at MyNewspaperService.com.
At MyNewspaperService.com you can put your delivery of the print edition on hold while out of town, you can register a delivery concern or make a subscription payment.
The reader is still trying to cancel but can't find an option for doing so.
Lincoln's letter does note that the current full access subscription most people are paying, $17 per month, "is an extremely great value" and that the rate will be honored for the duration of the promotional period. That promo period, as the Daily Advertiser reader pointed out, is not defined.
Read more about The Advertiser's paywall and the one that's coming soon to The Advocate, too, here.
The Independent, as you know, is free. All access. All the time.