Should we protect our content behind a wall?

404 Media has decided to protect almost all of their articles behind an email wall: readers are asked to provide their email address to read the full article, even for free articles.

They justify this interesting policy with multiple arguments:

• At least for now, the wall prevents AI models from scrapping their articles.
• Sending their articles to their subscribers by email is a channel they directly control, with very little intermediaries.
• It has improved their revenue.

In my opinion, this is a bold and fascinating change. I will start to experiment with it myself.

We Need Your Email Address

AI stealing our work. The collapse of social networks. The need to pay journalists to produce impactful journalism. Here is why we are asking for your email address to read 404 Media.

404 MediaJason Koebler