CNN launches paywall for news website

“Starting today, we are asking users in the United States to pay a small recurring fee for unlimited access to CNN.com’s world-class articles,” Alex MacCallum, CNN’s executive vice president of digital products and services, wrote in an internal memo reported by CNN. 

Users of the CNN’s website who only read a few articles a month will not yet be prompted to pay.

“Only after users consume a certain number of free articles will they be prompted to subscribe,” MacCallum said. “In addition to unlimited access to CNN.com’s articles, subscribers will receive benefits like exclusive election features, original documentaries, a curated daily selection of our most distinctive journalism, and fewer digital ads.”

CNN chairman and chief executive Mark Thompson announced an overhaul of the news network earlier this summer, promising the launch of CNN.com’s first direct-to-consumer subscription product before the end of the year.

A former BBC director general and New York Times CEO, Thompson was appointed as CEO of CNN in October 2023.

CNN, which make most of its money from cable television, is seeking to develop new digital revenue streams that can offset declines in legacy TV.

In 2022, CNN launched streaming service CNN+ but it was cancelled a few weeks later.