The New York Times increases digital subscription price for the first time

The New York Times will raise the price of its digital subscription from $15 every four weeks to $17, its first ever price bump.

The 13% increase will take effect on March 8, the company said on Tuesday.

The discount rate for students and educators remains $1 per week.

It is the first time that The New York Times has raised rates for its digital subscription service. The company launched the subscription model in March 2011, becoming one of the first American news organizations that put its content behind a paywall after allowing unrestricted access.

The decision was widely considered a bold move at a time when readers were not used to paying for digital content. Yet earnings proved otherwise: From 2017 to 2018, revenues from the Times’ digital-only subscription packages increased 18% year-over-year to $401 million, according to the company’s latest annual report.

The newspaper now has over four million digital subscribers, and it aims for 10 million by 2025. It tops The Wall Street Journal, which now has 1.5 million digital subscribers, and all other major newspapers with paywalls that have gradually shifted from print to digital in recent years.

The New York Times has added more than 200,000 digital subscribers every quarter since mid-2018. Advertising revenues are roughly split in half by its digital platforms and print papers, according to the company’s latest quarterly report.

The Times’ stock rose more than 5% on Tuesday.