Despite very limited content, magazine trade pub Folio: will put its website behind a metered paywall

The magazine trade publication Folio: today announced that it was putting its website behind a metered paywall starting immediately. Readers who visit foliomag.com will be able to access eight stories per month free of charge before they are forced to pay for an annual subscription to the print magazine ($69.95) or sign up for a monthly digital subscription ($14.49).

"At the core of our decision was this: We felt that it's very important to place a clear value on our content, and to recognize the value that our best customers see in what we do," wrote Bill Mickey, editor of the B2B pub. "Also, as a brand that covers the digital-media transformation, we seek to not just reflect what the industry is doing, but to lead it as well."

I often make fun of Folio: for its fawning editorial – the story that I remember most is "Why Marc Teren Matters", a 2000 profile of the soon to be fired RBI CEO – but it is one of the only trade publications left that cover the magazine business.

But the idea that Folio: would go behind a paywall is pretty strange. The question that has to be asked, seriously, is if a reader could find eight new posts in a month on the site? Right now there is a post written on the death of Helen Gurley Brown, but the next most recent posts are from the 9th. The most recent story under "Editorial" is from July 25.

"As a leader of the digital-content marketplace, we to need to adapt to the changing times," wrote Mickey to readers.

Indeed.