Hey whoa what is this, it seems that some newspaper companies in Europe are not doing too bad? How is this possible? They have a secret:

And that secret is, "Make money on something besides newspapers." Yea, they're newspaper companies, but really they're Jenny Craig and ESPN.com all in one!

VG Nett [in Norway], like most newspaper Web sites, generates most of its revenue from advertising, but is starting to raise money from users. About 150,000 people pay up to 599 crowns, or nearly $90, a year for a weight-loss club. VG Nett recently started charging up to 780 crowns a year for live streams of soccer matches. And a social network connected with VG Nett charges users to upgrade their profiles. Access to news, however, remains free.

News: your loss leader! Of course, this is a strictly European phenomenon. It'll only work in countries with lots of fat people and sports fanatics. American publishers will keep searching for their own solution. [NYT]

Send an email to Hamilton Nolan, the author of this post, at Hamilton@gawker.com.