NYT struggles with premium products

The New York Times is having a difficult time selling premium, edited, archival content, according to ContentBiz.
NYTimes.com created two editors’ Picks collections (‘Glory Days of Baseball, 1947-1957’ and ‘Best Pictures: Oscar Winners in the Times’); classic article collections of up to nine archived articles on a particular topic (e.g. column collections and recipes) for $4.95; and recordings of celebrity interviews.
Deputy General Manager & Director of Operations Stephen Newman says, “We’re not convinced – the jury’s still out.” and ContentBiz concludes, “Newman admits Premium Products have not been the easy…”
You have to give them credit for trying, but clearly newspapers still haven’t learned much about how to create ancillary products (online, print, or TV) that consumers are interested in. It’s especially discouraging because it’s the New York Times, with its brand, huge online audience, and outstanding content.