Connecticut’s largest daily newspaper has unveiled a new, downloadable digital format that it says will better position the paper among a younger demographic of readers, and could boast circulation upwards of 2 percent.
The effort, called eCourant, is basically an exact digital replica of the newspaper that can be downloaded through the Courant’s Web site. Subscribers will get a one month free trial membership, and must pay $9.95 a month thereafter for a subscription.
The Courant began offering the digital paper, which is downloaded from the paper’s Web site, on Oct. 1.
Although the eCourant includes all of the news that the paper publishes freely on its Web site, spokeswoman Andrea Savastra said the new product has certain advantages that the Courant believes readers will pay for.
Unlike the regular Web site, eCourant will include a 30-day archive of newspapers, content which will not be available on the regular Web site. The other advantage is format. While the courant’s Web site focuses on breaking news and hourly updates, the eCourant will be static, more easily readable for those more accustomed to an ink-and-paper news product.
Savastra said a key reason for the push is the Newspapers in Education project, which supplies daily newspapers to public schools. Additionally, an e-edition has helped other newspapers get a 1 percent to 2 percent bump in circulation — a number the Courant would love to see — although it remains cautiously optimistic, she said.
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Advertisements in the digital version of the newspaper can be linked to a company’s Web site.
The Courant, owned by Chicago-based Tribune Co., has suffered a stagnant or declining circulation every year for at least the last decade. It is one of a handful of Tribune-owned properties experimenting with digital editions of its newspapers.
Major newspapers have struggled in recent years in determining how to digitize their print products, and many continue to tweak the formula of paid versus free access to news content.
The New York Times last month announced that it would abandon its Times Select service, which charged a subscription fee for some portions of its online content. Meanwhile, Rupert Murdoch, who recently purchased the Wall Street Journal, has floated the idea of making the subscription-only Web site a free product. The Financial Times last week said it would make 30 articles per month free for visitors.
The eCourant will be based on software created by Tecnavia, a Switzerland-based company that provides similar services to newspapers in more than 100 countries.
“We are moving to be equally print and equally digital,” Savastra said. “The regular newspaper has been the central piece of our brand for over 200 years. Now we are moving into the digital world.”