Aussie News Publisher to Introduce Gaming to Websites

Australian news publishing giant News Ltd is expected to announce a new strategy this week in which it will launch pay-to-play trivia games on one of its websites to generate more income.

Users will be charged around A$1.50 to play the flash games, which will be featured on the website of the company's Sydney newspaper, the Daily Telegraph.

English company Amuso is providing News Ltd with the platform, which will allow users to play games for free or to pay to participate in games against other users for prize money.

Participants will be able to communicate with each other through chat facilities. Topics for the games are expected to include general knowledge, celebrities and entertainment.

The move comes as major news companies find it increasingly difficult to continue offering customers free access to their websites.

News Ltd chief Rupert Murdoch has played a prominent role in the debate over how to solve the ongoing problems - he recently announced that another member of the News Corp stable - Britain's Times Online - is planning to charge users for 24 hour access news content.

The latest announcement about online gaming will come as welcome news for those readers of the Daily Telegraph who will be hoping the news site finds other ways of generating income and refrains from charging its customers for using the site.