A major Italian newspaper outlet is apparently now accepting bitcoin for digital subscriptions, we’re learning from a reader email this morning. The bitcoin logo is boldly visible on il Giornale‘s digital subscriptions page [link], where nearby it says, “The Journal is the first newspaper in Italy and in Europe who accepts payments in Bitcoin.”
The outlet is one of the top 20 daily papers in Italy, with a last reported circulation number of 678,000 readers in 2012.
il Giornale‘s digital subscriptions allow readers to view all news categories and articles in PDF files optimized for Android smartphones, iPads, and other tablet devices.
The cost? 0.42 cents per day with an annual subscription.
Despite the fact that il Giornale may be the first major newspaper in Italy and Europe to accept bitcoin, they aren’t the first in the world.
Here in the United States, the Chicago Sun-Times announced they would be accepting bitcoin payments for subscriptions at the start of April of this year in a move designed “to keep the Sun-Times current and evolving with changing technology.”
Despite the news, many in the community weren’t exactly surprised, given the paper’s previous interest in the digital currency. In early February, the paper put up a bitcoin paywall as a test of how users would interact with using bitcoin (users had the option of donating to a non-profit). The results were overwhelmingly positive, with 713 donors.
While we haven’t exactly seen widespread adoption of bitcoin for digital news subscriptions, it’s nice to see it getting a start in Italy.
