The parent company of the Guardian welcomed the move and said any extra money would go towards supporting the Guardian as it becomes increasingly reliant on direct financial support from readers. Representatives of the Times and Financial Times, two of the UK’s most popular paywalled news outlets, did not respond to requests for comment on whether they would be passing on the saving to consumers or using the extra money to reinvest in their journalism. It is expected to include any online publication which charges VAT on its subscriptions. However, the exact definition of an “e-newspaper” or “e-magazine” still remains unclear, making it hard to say which outlets will benefit. The decision to scrap VAT on online publications follows a long-running campaign by book publishers and newspapers, led by News UK, publisher of the Times. The government also announced plans to spend £35m on public information advertising in national and local newspapers over the next three months, which will help prop up outlets that have experienced a catastrophic loss of income since the start of the lockdown. “We want to make it as easy as possible for people across the UK to get hold of the books they want whilst they are staying at home and saving lives,” said the chancellor, Rishi Sunak. The move had initially been due to come into force in 2021 but has been brought forward by the Treasury amid the pandemic, with the media facing an uncertain financial future. “After receiving today’s notification, we are working as fast as possible to lower prices for customers.” “For titles where Amazon sets the price, we will reduce the prices of books not already on promotion,” said a spokesperson.
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