Would you pay for online news?

News today that Rupert Murdoch is going to start charging for his online newspapers such as The Times, The Sun & the Wall Street Journal.

He's potty. He should ignore his middle aged management consultants and poll some youngsters.

I can see people paying for specialist news on a restricted market. In the UK the online service provided by the Estates Gazette group is first class and value for money.

However, I can't see people paying online for general news, celebrity gossip or even page 3 girls as it's all so freely available.

The newspaper industry is in serious decline but this isn't the answer Rupert. My father actually worked with Murdoch in Fleet Street for 10 years or so in the 1970's but I'm afraid those times (like the old printing presses) are long gone.

If he really wants to turn around the £2bn annual loss then he really needs to hand the reins of News Corporation to some youngsters who can marry new media with the bottom line.

www.cognacproperty.com

Land registry figures don't lie

Thanks to my old friend Peter Bill for this:

Sales volumes, not prices, are what matter to estate agents. Land Registry figures out this week show they remain awful. The number of new homes sold in London in April 2009 was 3888. This is almost precisely half the number sold in April last year.

Miserable sales figures have been overshadowed by the cheerful news that prices are stabilising. But that is cold comfort to those who make their living on sales commission.
The posh end of the market is where most of the overshadowing takes place. Forget the endless spin about how top end prices are moving up and that rich foreigners are buying again in Knightsbridge, Mayfair or, well, pick you spot.

The fact is that just 121 homes were sold for more than £1 million this April. In April 2008 the number was 246. The number sold over £2 million: two dozen — down from 62 last year.

It's clear that there is currently a certain amount of talking the market up in the media, mostly from agents.

Sadly "House prices crash" and "House prices soar" sell papers while "House prices don't move much" won't quite hit the front page.


Ultimately though, as Peter says, it's the transaction numbers that are the important ones if you earn your living from buying or selling houses.



www.cognacproperty.com