New York Times to Launch Beta Site to Test New Features

The New York Times will in the coming months roll out a beta site that allows readers to test potential new features of its flagship, NYTimes.com, AdAge reports. The site, named Beta620 after the company’s 8th Ave. address, will be a sort of proving ground to examine new features’ impact on readers and advertisers.

This strategy offers the added benefit of trying new things without mucking around too much with the high-traffic main site. “Our hope is that we will be able to bring new ideas from concept to prototype to launch much faster with a public beta site than we could using NYTimes.com alone — and that we may do so without the risk of disrupting NYTimes.com or conflicting with other development projects,” said Marc Frons, chief technology officer for digital operations, in a memo quoted by AdAge.

The Times has been making some noticeable tweaks to its user experience of late. The site’s story pages now feature pop-up boxes in the bottom right hand corner showcasing links to related articles. The politics page got a facelift ahead of a planned partnership with popular polling blog FiveThirtyEight. The new beta site offers the Times a chance to find winning enhancements without the risk of alienating visitors to the main homepage.

All this could prove significant as the Times continues to shuffle personnel in advance of its metered subscription model, due for implementation in early 2011.

(h/t Observer)

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