In what can termed as an anticipatory response to the rumored release of the Apple tablet as well as the burgeoning e-reader market, a strategic policy change is round the corner at The New York Times – with the newspaper intending to revert to a subscription-based access to its online service for readers.

According to sources in the know, the nytimes. com site that went free in 2007, as the firm hoped to reap more benefits from advertising than from subscriptions, will allow readers to read a fixed number of free articles per month, after which it will seek a subscription fee for the service – thereby following a ‘metered’ payment system similar to the one used by the FT.

It is also likely that The New York Times may follow the approach used by The Wall Street Journal, wherein access to some select articles will be allowed only to readers who subscribe to the online service of the newspaper.

A spokeswoman of The New York Times said: “We'll announce a decision when we believe that we have crafted the best possible business approach.”

Hopefully, The New York Times’ final decision about what subscription approach to follow will resolve two competing concerns of the paper – firstly, tapping new revenue sources in the wake of a calamitous scenario of print advertising, and preserving revenue from the ads displayed on nytimes. com.