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Thursday 27th May: Could monthly access bridge the gap between micropayments and subscriptions?

Good morning! Today's Media Roundup is brought to you by Esther.

Despite apparent demand from readers, micropayments have yet to take off in any substantial way as a revenue generator for publishers. To be frank, it's still a ballache to do a transaction for an amount that small, and no 'wallet' has yet gained widespread enough use to be worth it.

But as more publishers put up paywalls, readers are increasingly offered a binary choice when it comes to paying for journalism: either you subscribe, or you don't read.

Here, Mark Stenberg sets out his vision for a monthly access payment, or MAP. Modelled on newsstand pricing, where a passerby can pick up a selection articles in a newspaper or magazine for a few dollars but no commitment, the idea of a digital 'bundle' - or a months' worth of access to a site - makes more sense.

While this might go down well with readers, I suspect the issue here is with publishers who would much rather have the predictable monthly subscription fee coming in, even if they have to work harder for it. As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts - just reply to this email.

If you run a local news organisation that’s trying to figure out reader or corporate funding, here are some tips to get you started from a team who have developed their own Newsroom Partnership program and grown their community revenue to $250,000.

The Economist is launching its new online executive education program, Economist Education. The first course, "The New Global Order: How politics, business and technology are changing," lasts for six weeks and will cost £1,475 ($2,087). This is a smart way to make use of journalistic expertise, and we'll be watching this with interest.

Okay, but making money from methods that repeatedly violate privacy isn't great either. This headline is based on the assumption that no alternative is put in place to make up the shortfall, which is why it's so important that publishers have a solid first-party data strategy, and that the industry comes together behind a third-party cookie alternative.

This week's episode:

This week we hear from Bo Sacks, a columnist and lecturer with a long career history in magazines and publishing. He talks about trends that have come and gone, why he thinks print is strong as a niche product, and why we’re currently in the golden age of publishing.

Ahead of our latest Conversations episode being released next week, take a look through our archive and hear experts discussing the state of the digital publishing market, privacy, subscription success, and more.