Media Story | Irish newspapers and the battle to control online content

Irish newspapers created quite a stir when they demanded a fee for incoming links to their content. Controversy erupted on 30 December, when an attorney from the Irish law firm McGarr solicitors exposed the case of one of its clients. Women's Aid organisation, being asked to pay a fee to Irish newspapers for each link they send to them.the twitter sphere, the blogosphere and, by and large, every self-proclaimed cyber moral authority, reacted in anger to Irish newspapers' demands that go against common sense as well as against the most basic business judgment.

But on closer examination, the position of the Irish dead tree media is just the tip of the iceberg for an industry facing issues that go well beyond its reluctance to embrace the culture of web links.As for the Irish newspapers, despite their dumb rate card for links, they claimed to be open to "arrangements" Having said that, such posturing reflects a key fact: traditional media, newspapers or broadcast media, send contradictory messages when it comes to links, which are simply not part of their original culture.

This shows how traditional media institutions are trying to rein in on money making through online news, despite the fact it may be seen as too harsh. This is probably due to the fact that they foresee the decline of newspapers inevitable and need to continue a means of gaining revenue.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2013/jan/07/irish-newspapers-control-online-content