NY Times puts video news updates on website

NEW YORK CITY - The New York Times on Wednesday unveiled short video newscasts on its website, updated at least three times daily, as part of its effort to compete in the digital space.

"The New York Times Minute," summarizes three important stories of the moment, including breaking news.

"Video is a fast growing and important part of our news report," said executive editor Jill Abramson in a statement.

"The New York Times Minute series is a natural extension of our journalism that allows our viewers a quick and useful way to keep up with the news."

The video segments will be released at 6:00 am (1100 GMT), noon (1700 GMT) and 6:00 pm (2300 GMT) on NYTimes.com.

"In between episodes, the most current segment will be updated as news develops for up-to-date reporting," according to a statement from the daily.

The video segments will be optimized for mobile devices, and designed to be shared across all platforms. They will be free and unlimited to all users. Microsoft is the launch sponsor.

The Times is shifting its focus from print to digital as it strives to adapt to a decline in readership and competition from other sources of news online.

The company recently said it is bringing in more revenue from readers and subscribers than from advertising for the first time.

The Times announced separately it had launched its news reader app for Android phones and tablets on the Google Play Newsstand.

"The Times on Google Play Newsstand is an extension of the NYT Everywhere strategy, which is designed to expand The Times's reach to users on third-party platforms," a statement said.

"The launch also demonstrates The Times's commitment to Android, where users can already access Times content via its Android app, Flipboard for Android and the Web."

The Times said it would relax its paywall to allow non-subscribers to view to 15 articles a day through January 5, up from three free articles.

"By raising the article limit through the holidays, Newsstand users who may not yet be Times subscribers will get a significant sense of the depth and authority of the news, opinion and multimedia offerings available on NYTimes.com," said executive vice president Denise Warren.