The 50p fallout: can others afford to match that Sun price ?
The old master does it again. In a series of Tweets Rupert Murdoch announces the 50p price of the new Sun this Sunday and slashes the price of the Saturday Sun to 50p also.
The Sun: just 50p, Sat and Sun
The devil is in the detail. Murdoch describes the price of for the new Sunday paper as the REGULAR price . Clearly, despite the vast toll of legal costs, News International still has money in the kitty.
Even if the others offer short-term vouchers or price cuts, I do not see them matching that 50p price on a regular basis.
To rub salt into his rivals' wounds, Murdoch then tweets, "More good Sun news. We're completely sold out for advertising."
I have no doubt the management teams at the Mirrror and the Star are tearing their hair out (that is, if they have any left).
The best that can be hoped for, from their point of view, is that the 50p price allows readers to buy an extra paper.
As I've said, I do have reservations about the idea of "more of the same" on Sunday. If you didn't like the Sun before, you may still not like it.
Nonetheless popular papers with cover prices of more than £1 will have their work cut out to prevent cost-conscious readers deserting.
Rupert also had this morale-boosting tweet for Sun staffers, "London Sun. Great staff tired but excited for Sunday edition. Yougov poll shows 90pc awareness already. Big announcements start tomorrow."