Web Sites "Tear Down That Wall"

Rupert Murdoch's announcement this week that he expects to stop charging for access to the Wall Street Journal's Web site is the latest example of a publisher giving up on the subscription-based business model -- a significant shift in the evolution of online content.
In recent months, the Economist, the New York Times and the Financial Times have all moved content out from "behind the wall," an industry metaphor for the location of paid online content.

The lesson seems to be that online consumers will pay only for niche content of intense interest to them -- such as specialized industry news from trade publications, inside sports news, gambling tips, pornography and so on. As Slate editor Jacob Weisberg puts it: It's all "pornography of one kind or another." READ WASHINGTON POST

NFL TO PLAY IN LONDON THIS WEEK

Talk about a mid-season road trip. The Miami Dolphins and New York Giants are probably planning their sleep schedules now.
As teams get ready to play this Sunday at Wembley Stadium in London, the National Football League says more regular-season games overseas may be in the offing.

The league today unveiled a 26-foot-tall replica of Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor in London's Trafalgar Square. The replica, which the NFL is calling the biggest animated human figure ever built, was created by London-based SFX Company Artem. It has moveable feet and arms.

The Dolphins, at 0-7, could probably use this thing!

And in case you can't tell who that is standing at Taylor's feet, it's a movie star......... OK, I was using the word "star" loosely. Yes, that's Christian Slater, and no, I have no idea how Christian Slater was chosen as the American "star" to help the NFL promote the American brand of football across the pond.