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Updated: It’s Official: New York Times Will Adopt Online Meter—But Not Until 2011 | paidContent.

Yawn.

I’ve been telling people this for months: The New York Times is done. Finished. Kaput. Doesn’t matter which revenue model they’re playing with this year.

Why? It’s simple: media outlets that insist on cost-prohibitive newsprint operations cannot compete unless they have a high-end niche. The reason the Financial Times and The Economist can make money is that people are willing to pay to read them. Part of that comes from their excellent journalism, but just as much comes from the fact that both appeal to an affluent reader. The New York Times does neither. But hey, they appeal to everyone…which is a great way to lose money when you insist on using a printing press.

So the Grey Lady or Old Lady or whatever it’s called can roll out whatever monetization plan it wishes, but until it goes all digital or becomes something more specialized than “all the news that’s fit to print,” it doesn’t stand a chance in this day and age.

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