Zell On Pay Walls, And “The Future Of Newspapers.” (Hint: It’s Spelled PDF)
Fitz: In this video from a “Billionaire’s Roundtable” on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Tribune Co. Chairman Sam Zell opines on pay walls, newspapers as a long-term business proposition and the “future” of newspapers.
“The future is home delivery by PDF,” Zell says in a throwaway line. And newspapers do have a future he assures his fellow billionaires: “But the role of newspapers in generating news, generating information, and delivering that content, I think is a valid long-term position that needs to be both protected and improved.”
That came in response to a suggestion from Wilbur Ross, the leveraged buyout specialist, that print newspapers are doomed: “I think all print media are obsoleting themselves and you’ll all end up at best on Kindle.”
Zell also cedes the role of pay wall pioneer to News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch: "I'm more than willing to let Rupert take the first sword. And if it works, then I think everybody's going to follow him, and should have in the first place." Zell thinks there’s a “good chance” that pay walls will indeed work.
Zell’s comments come about three and a half minutes into the video.
“The future is home delivery by PDF.”
I wish I could say, with a straight face, that this surprises me.
Posted by: Mike Donatello | December 03, 2009 at 10:53 AM