On the lines of The Financial Times’ policy, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., Chairman of The New York Times, has proposed a change in policy, whereby the online content of the esteemed newspaper will become a subscription-based service, after providing the readers a free access to some articles.

Going by a relevant piece of information in New York magazine, a few weeks from now, the newspaper will likely announce a ‘metered pay plan’ which will allow the readers an access to a limited number of free articles before asking them to so in for a subscription.

The New York magazine report also suggested that the newspaper is probably working on a content deal for the much-rumored Apple tablet computer, which, going by speculations, will likely be unveiled on January 27.

Though The New York Times’ subscription move appears justifiable on the grounds that the online news fetish of the readers have caused the newspaper declining subscriber numbers and lower advertising revenue, thereby bringing about a dramatic industry contraction, readers online have given a ‘mixed’ response to the announcement.

While unnamed inside sources have reported that Rupert Murdoch, the News Corporation chairman, is planning a charging system for all the newspaper Web sites of the company, Times spokeswoman Diane McNulty refrained from confirming the news and said: “We'll announce a decision when we believe that we have crafted the best possible business approach. No details till then.”