Again, this isn't happening here, but this spring at two MediaNews Group-owned papers in Pennsylvania and California. Still, Poynter Online's Steve Myers has some fascinating detail on what the PiPress' Denver-based overlords are testing.

After talking to two MNG executives, Myers says all web content will be free to subscribers; non-subscribers can buy in for a tentative $3.99 a month. There's also an interesting interim step for freeloaders: fork over some demographic and email info (for newsletters with ads) and you can see 25 "premium" articles a month for free.

This sort of no-pay, info-for-access trade is a bit similar to one proposed by businessman and media analyst Alan Mutter last year.

What's premium? "Investigations, enterprise, analysis, columns and reviews," Myers writes.

What may be more intriguing: MNG's strategy for producing new premium content. According to one source, that will involve "using dynamic tools to scour the Web for content that's appropriate for its market." The writer adds, "This approach will employ geo-targeted, personalized, user-generated and aggregated content, and will include classifieds and local directories."

There are plenty of skeptics who doubt web users will pay for what MNG provides, but on some level, the company will measure success if current print payers keep paying. According to one exec, "The strategy underlying all this is to protect our print product. Success is a leveling-off of decline in circulation numbers and/or less of a need to have heavy sales efforts to maintain the numbers."