Ask HN: What's a good alternative to The Verge now it's login-gated?

#1

Post by mnfrmcddlykrnl » Fri, Dec 13, 2024, 6:43 PM UTC

For the last few years I’ve mainly just checked The Verge for the latest tech news. Alas, I will not be creating an account just to browse.

Re: Ask HN: What's a good alternative to The Verge now it's login-gated?

#2

Post by cebert » Fri, Dec 13, 2024, 6:59 PM UTC

I seem to still be able to read articles if I dismiss the email popup.

Re: Ask HN: What's a good alternative to The Verge now it's login-gated?

#3

Post by akudha » Fri, Dec 13, 2024, 8:57 PM UTC

Why do so many free sites force users to login? Are they trying to shield their content from AI bots? Or is it something else?

Re: Ask HN: What's a good alternative to The Verge now it's login-gated?

#4

Post by lbhdc » Fri, Dec 13, 2024, 9:25 PM UTC

akudha wrote: post #3

Why do so many free sites force users to login? Are they trying to shield their content from AI bots? Or is it something else?

They have a paywall now, you can still view their free articles without an account.

My understanding is that most publications like this have declining financials. More competition, functional replacements in the market, declining search traffic, changing audience preferences. The pay wall is to try to re-capture some of that lost rev to keep things going. They have some free articles about this and have talked about it on their podcast.