When a new section doesn’t have to be sent to every subscriber, it becomes easier to create new products. It becomes less costly to experiment. That means the newsroom can be more responsive to the laws of supply and demand.

When subscribers to the Sports section increase, so should the page count and the ad rates. If only a handful subscribe to a Society section, then there should be only a handful of pages and lower ad rates. Each section should operate under its own P&L; statement, adjusting page count, staffing and ad rates to respond exactly to the market’s demand.

And there’s nothing that says every section must be daily. If the market can support only a weekly, introduce the new Theater section as a weekly. Maybe the newspaper offers both a weekly and daily Ticket section. Let users decide which suits them.

In the end, the newsroom will be able to increase coverage for popular sections. Or a small staff can maintain a niche section. Coverage increases during a time when the market is forcing cuts.

And newspaper ad rates can serve both low and high-end advertisers.

Tomorrow's entry: Feeding the junkies, and paying for it