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Readability now donation-supported, makes premium features free

Readability now donation-supported, makes premium features free

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We're resisting the obvious joke about Readability now being Free-dability, but the app that lets you turn cluttered webpages into pristine text has unlocked its full capabilities for everyone, not just subscribers. But enthusiastic users can still donate to support the software, and the content it delivers.

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Readability

We're resisting the obvious joke about Readability now being Free-dability, but the app that lets you turn cluttered webpages into pristine text has unlocked its full capabilities for everyone, not just subscribers. But enthusiastic users can still donate to support the software, and the content it delivers.

Last February, Readability offered a premium option for $5 a month; subscribers got unlimited access to their reading lists, favorites, and archives. It also promised $3.50 of that subscription fee to publishers and writers, some of whom worried that the app deprived them of revenue by stripping away advertising, in addition to copying content.

That dual purpose paying for new features and paying for worthwhile readingis one reason Readability swtiched to donations. "As supporting great writing on the web is one of our key goals," CTO Chris Dary wrote, "having features tied to our support platform felt like it was muddling the message." Paying users now know that, rather than buying access to new features, their contribution goes to supporting the product and the writing it delivers.