Journal Defies Odds by Maintaining Paywall

(MoneyWatch)  Almost alone in its field, the Wall Street Journal has been able to maintain its online paid subscription model when virtually every other news site has abandoned the paid-content approach.

When he first took over the Journal last year, Rupert Murdoch said he would scrap the subscription model, allow all of the site's content to be free, and earn much more money off of the advertising revenue that would be generated by the subsequent spike in traffic.

But Murdoch later reversed himself on this issue, saying in late May, "When I saw how much money (we) were making, I changed my mind on it." The site does offer much more free content than in previous times, including news alerts, personal-finance, opinion and lifestyle content, as well as videos, blogs, podcasts and other interactive elements.

But apparently enough exclusive content in its core business and financial reporting sections is considered a "must-read" that consumers can justify paying for it.

In any event, the WSJ online continues to show impressive growth, recording a 94 percent increase in its user base over the past year to 16.2 million. It took in around $60 million in subscription revenue last year. A single web subscription costs $49 a year.