I've started to see ads for "TimesSelect," the new fee-based online version of The New York Times, which launches September 19th. The benefits to me as a print subscriber seem pretty cool: I get up to 100 articles dating back to 1981 and access to the full contents of the paper, among other things.

It's incredible this took so long to roll out. It's also sure to be a good market test of the limits of "free" on the Internet. Over the last 15 years, the Internet has been about free screen savers. Free fonts. Free games. Free instant messenger software. Free music. And free content. The Internet has created a culture and expectation of free.

Agree or disagree with specific articles or columns in the Times, however, the paper is a product that requires millions of dollars to produce. It's irreplaceable, too. Love or hate today's op-ed column, there will never be another New York Times. And since there is no public policy reason to make it freely or cheaply available (such as things people need to survive, like medicine), I think the Times Company should try to get whatever the market will bear.

Now, since presumably this will be a profitable decision, it's worth wondering where the additional dollars will go. If I'm a Times Company shareholder (which I am not), I vote for quality control. It's been dismal over the last few years, from delinquent reporters, to columnists that appear to be able to say whatever they want, to passively monitored and unidentified stringers who are outside the company's training and culture.

(Full disclosure: for two years I was a freelance writer for New York Times Digital, covering sports, music and nightlife. My editors were what every editor should be. They let not one word go by unscrutinized and subjected every piece to diligent, if not harsh, editing and quality assurance.)

Where should the new profits not go? Chasing down false synergies with things like minority interests in sports teams. This distracts management from reaping the full rewards of what they do best. It's nice to see the company attempting to extract more value out of its unquestionable flagship product.

Overall, I think it's a good bet for the business to make. And I hope it uses the rewards to make its product better.