'USA Today' reportedly may charge for mobile apps

New York—Gannett Co.'s USA Today may charge for mobile applications on smartphones and tablet computers, said Larry Kramer, the newspaper's president-publisher, in an interview with Bloomberg Television's “Street Smart.”

“If people want it on their cell phone, they may have to pay for it on their cell phone, because there's a cost to delivering it that way,” Kramer told Bloomberg TV. “If they want it on their iPad, we may charge them for an iPad app. Yes, I definitely think in many ways they will be paying for it, and that's OK.”

Gannett Co. has shifted about half of its 82 newspapers to a pay model, leading to a 13% gain in digital revenue in the second quarter, Bloomberg said.

Originally posted on: 8/24/12