IL to meter digital access, offer new subscription options

The way law firms and companies do business has changed dramatically in recent years. And the media business is no exception. Traditional media — newspapers, television and radio — are all reinventing themselves.

However, even with current industry challenges, I’m happy to report Indiana Lawyer’s reach has never been greater. Between our award-winning newspaper readers totaling 12,000, TheIndianaLawyer.com’s 75,000 monthly unique visitors, almost 12,000 daily and weekly e-newsletter subscribers and hundreds of attendees at in-house produced CLE events — the Indiana Lawyer brand has never been more prolific.

While the dramatic increase in audience is a positive story, the decline of print advertising in larger-market newspapers is another story. The old funding model for publications in which about 85 percent of revenue comes from advertising and 15 percent from paid subscribers doesn’t apply anymore. The new model is closer to a 50/50 split. This is the direction Indiana Lawyer must head if we are to continue to produce the high-quality content our readers have relied on for 27 years.

In that vein, in the coming weeks, Indiana Lawyer readers will be given an opportunity to choose from enhanced subscription and access options. The choices readers make will dictate what digital content can be accessed under our soon to be implemented TheIndianaLawyer.com metered-paywall business model.

Attention Indianapolis Bar Association members — In three simple steps, you will be upgraded to full print and digital access to everything we provide as part of your IndyBar member benefit package. This enhanced benefit is free when you register your login credentials at TheIndianaLawyer.com.

More access means more opportunity.

The value of Indiana Lawyer begins and ends with content. Our readers turn to us for news they won’t see in other media anywhere. Indiana Lawyer reporters go behind the scenes to cover news from the state’s courts, the General Assembly and the legal community, providing readers with information not only about what changes or decisions have occurred, but why. In addition to our news coverage, Indiana Lawyer introduces readers to leaders and innovators in the practice of law. And, I’m just scratching the surface here. If you’re in the business of law in Indiana, you need the Indiana Lawyer.

While our print edition comes out every other week, you can count on Indiana Lawyer to bring you the latest legal news online or in your email inbox as it happens. To that end, we are expanding and enhancing our digital content. For the first time, we’re offering online readers easy, instant access to all Indiana Lawyer digital content. Every story, the complete biweekly print issue, plus archives, and complete e-newsletter content.

Smart and simple. By choice.

Our best subscription option, Indiana Lawyer Premium digital + print, offers unlimited access to all content in both print and digital formats.

This “best of both” combination includes:

• An award-winning, legal-focused newspaper published biweekly, delivered directly to your home or office. Inside the Indiana Lawyer:

• Industry specific focus sections relevant to the practice of law provide the opportunity to drill down into a specific area of the law.

• Special supplements like Leadership in Law, which recognizes outstanding members of Indiana’s legal community as Distinguished Barristers and Up and Coming Lawyers. And the Corporate Counsel Guide features the who’s who in Indiana corporate counsel at Indiana public and private companies.

• A four-page Indianapolis Bar Association special section keeping readers informed about Indy Bar news, initiatives and events appears in every issue.

• A Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana newsletter is included in every other issue, with a DTCI column running in alternate issues.

• Viewpoint provides regularly featured columnists, guest columnists and editorial staff a forum for discussion and legal opinion on timely topics.

• Indiana court decisions provide a listing of important for-publication federal and state appellate decisions issued during the two-week reporting period.

• Daily news provides a recap of the legal news stories reported in the IL Daily email, expanding the newspaper’s coverage of happenings from around the state.

• Disciplinary actions detail suspensions, reinstatements, reprimands, disbarments, and other discipline ordered by the Indiana Supreme Court.

Plus…

• Full digital access giving you instant, unlimited access to all content on TheIndinaLawyer.com — including the contents of the print issue, archived issues, breaking news online, all daily, weekly and special e-newsletters such as IL daily, Breaking News and News Updates and In This Issue of Indiana Lawyer. Additionally, reader-friendly, page-turning digital replicas of the print editions are available online.

• Don’t forget the IL daily e-newsletter includes the up-to-the-minute opinions from the Indiana appellate courts and the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. You’ll need a subscription that includes digital to read the details of those opinions.

A second subscription option — digital only — includes everything listed above, except for the weekly print edition of the newspaper. The contents of the print edition are available online, but you won’t get the physical newspaper delivered with the digital-only subscription. And, of course, subscribers will still have the choice of receiving only the print edition.

Metered paywall explained

If you’re a paid Indiana Lawyer premium digital + print subscriber or a digital-only subscriber and logged in to TheIndianaLawyer.com, you don’t need to worry about the metered paywall. You’ll have unlimited access to everything.

However, beginning in a few short weeks, website visitors without one of those subscription options will have more limited access. If you are an unregistered website visitor, you’ll be able to read only a few articles, or full e-newsletter stories (click on “more”) before you will be asked to become a registered user. After registering, you’ll receive a limited number of free looks per month. If you want to read more than the free monthly allowance — and you don’t want to wait until next month when the meter resets — you’ll need to sign up for either the IL Premium digital + print or digital-only subscription.

Of course, the way to avoid the metered paywall and to enjoy additional benefits and privileges is to have an Indiana Lawyer Premium digital + print or digital-only subscription. Then, you’ll have access to everything without interruption.

Here’s some great news: If you’re already a print-only subscriber, for a limited time, you’ll be able to upgrade your subscription to Indiana Lawyer Premium digital + print for free. Your account must be paid and in good standing to qualify for the free upgrade.

You can upgrade at www.TheIndianaLawyer.com/register in the coming weeks. Of course, you may keep your print-only subscription if you like, but why pass up all the added benefits provided at no additional cost?

Here’s how simple it is to have unlimited access to all Indiana Lawyer content. All subscribers who have digital access as part of their subscription will need to log in using your email and password. All print-only subscribers can go to TheIndianaLawyer.com and select REGISTER at the top right of the home page to create their new login credentials. In just three simple steps, you’ll have more access to more information than ever before. In the coming weeks, get ready to enjoy more benefits as an Indiana Lawyer subscriber.

The bottom line is, when you’re a paid Indiana Lawyer subscriber, that includes digital; you’ll have more access to more information than ever before.

These changes reflect an increasing demand for quality legal news coverage, delivered in multiple formats — digital and print. We are responding to that call by expanding our offerings of professional, insightful local and statewide reporting on all issues pertaining to law that have earned this publication multiple journalism awards year after year. And we’ll continue to work hard to earn your trust with every issue, every story, every day.

Thanks for reading and supporting Indiana Lawyer!•

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Greg Morris is publisher of Indiana Lawyer. To comment on this column, send email to [email protected].