Forbes

Here’s a startup to watch:  it’s called Patch, and it’s a company that goes into towns without a community newspaper or where the paper is struggling and starts a hyperlocal Web site.  Patch is exclusively advertising-supported.  Advertisers can either buy the traditional ad or get an ad where they pay by page views -- $15 per thousand at this point.  Check out this Forbes article – Patch and other similar ventures are showing some success, and we predict that it won’t be long before more start popping up in Texas.

John Zogby writes in his regular Forbes column about research data that suggest many news consumers trust online over print. Why? Zogby suggests it has to do with the deep-rooted perception bias. It's hard to apply his conclusions to community newspapers, but the survey results are still eye opening.

You may have the only newspaper in the county, but don't just assume that you can never end up with competition because of the cost involved in starting another newspaper. For a look -- and admittedly, a scary look -- at what may be the future of the news business, see the article above. Two years ago, nobody would have dreamed that the scenario in this article could have played out in San Diego. But it is, and in other cities, too. And in the not-too-distant future, we'll see more media start-ups like this in Texas.