Globe and Mail makes its videos embeddable

Globe and Mail video

Even as Canadian newspapers continue to apply their paywall policies, some publications have moved to make their work available for free. The Globe and Mail is among the latest paper noted to begin stressing the making of its own videos and permitting other publishers or private persons to access the embedding code so the video may be seen on other websites or blogs. The availability of good video is a source of interest for readers of any site. The Globe, like some other publishers, has apparently concluded that the promotional value of being seen elsewhere, plus the technical "hit" or page view registered when a reader clicks on a Globe video, is worth the price of giving away news. It is a reverse notion to the paywall strategy. The most recent wave of Canadian paywalls appears to be in transition. The Postmedia papers are applying the paywall rigidly. The Toronto Star (which also permits some embedding) and the Globe and Mail now seem to apply the paywall blackout less frequently. It is a tough call for papers. In recent remarks the Star publisher said it was too soon to decide on the sucesss of the paywall. It was, he said, about what the paper had expected.  He did not state numbers nor address the potent issue of how paywalls might decrease page views, an essential element of how much a paper may charge for online advertising.