The Times Colonist website has a "metered paywall."
That means we let you have a certain number of free views of our web pages before we ask you to pay. We keep track (meter) of your visits, occasionally asking if you might like to subscribe. This happens after two and five "pageviews," by way of a very unpopular popup window.
When you hit 10 pageviews, you either subscribe or wait for the meter to be reset. The meter is reset every 30 days, depending on when you logged your first pageview.
Some people mistakenly assume it resets at the beginning of the month, then call or write to complain that they aren't getting a new set of free pageviews on the first.
We used to allow more free pageviews and in the future we may offer less. The notion is that if you hit our paywall, it's an indication that you are a regular reader of our content and it's worth the money to subscribe.
We'll save the debate about whether you should have to pay for online news at all for another day. (When you subscribe, no more popups!)
And don't forget, if you are a PRINT subscriber to the Times Colonist, that includes complimentary access to all our digital products: website, E-edition and mobile apps (coming soon -- honest).
Please direct any questions or comments about our digital products my way. Click on the e-mail link above, or find my contact information HERE.
>> Find my introductory blog entry HERE
