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I'd like an overview of all the types of freemium business models that exist in the content/media space, with examples of those models. For example, Washington Post offers 10 free articles per month, and then offers a subscription. Are there any examples of subscriptions that have freemium offers within them? For example, I have an Amazon Prime membership, and within that membership I get to pick one free book a month, and then I get an offer to purchase additional books.
Hello! Thanks for your question about the different types of freemium business models used by media companies. The short answer is that there are four main models offered on the market at this time including unlimited freemium, limited freemium, metered paywall, and complimentary. Below you will find a deep dive of my findings.
METHODOLOGY
I have gone through different opinion pieces, business articles and product reviews to find the different freemium business models that exist in the media industry. I have elaborated on them here. After searching extensively, I did not find freemium perks offered within memberships, like Amazon Prime.
Unlimited Freemium:
This is a business model where the user gets to access all the content on the platform. But, this version of the platform is a simple one with limited features and ads. When one signs-up, they get to access to all the features on the website and also have an ad-free experience. The biggest example for this Spotify. It is one of the most successful practitioners of this model.
Limited Freemium:
In this business model, there is separate content for unpaid customers and paid customers. YouTube Red is an exclusive platform is aimed at monetizing a small percentage of the audience that already uses YouTube. YouTube Red members get exclusive content from YouTube creators for a monthly subscription. While, subscribers to Medium get to access exclusive content and "access to an offline reading queue."
Metered Paywall:
The metered paywall or a soft paywall means that users have access to all the content on the website but can only access a limited quantity per month. Statista, The New York Times and Harvard Business Review are the best examples of this model where you get to read a specific number of articles per month before they offer a paid monthly subscription.
Complimentary Model:
When it comes to media giants like Apple, Google, and Amazon, it often happens that you get free content in the form of apps, music and movies. But again, to get access to content you like, you will have to pay individually. This is the case when it comes to iTunes or Amazon Prime membership or the Google Playstore.
CONCLUSION
To wrap it up, one can get a number of benefits with a subscription; be it event passes, exclusive content, discounts, etc. But it all depends on how companies approach users and convert them into customers. These were the four major freemium models that are in existence today in the media industry. Thank you for asking Wonder! Please let us know if we can help you with anything else!