Selective Hard Paywall on Metered Model

Problem Statement

Pelcro currently supports metered paywalls as a funnel to convert anonymous users into subscribers. However, when using a metered model, all content is treated equally under the meter.

Media publishers often have high-value or exclusive content (e.g. investigations, premium columns, special reports) that should always remain behind a hard paywall, regardless of a user’s remaining free articles.

At present, there is no native way to:

• Exclude specific content from the meter, or

• Enforce a hard paywall for selected content while still using a metered model globally.

This limits publishers’ ability to strategically monetize premium content and results in lost revenue opportunities.

User Story

As a publisher using Pelcro’s metered paywall,
I want to mark specific content (individual articles, categories, or tagged content) as always hard paywalled,
so that only authenticated subscribers or members can access it,
while all other content continues to follow the standard metered paywall flow.

Proposed Solution (High-Level)

Introduce a hard paywall override mechanism that works on top of the existing metered paywall logic.

• The decision to hard paywall content is driven by metadata provided by the CMS

• When flagged content is accessed:

  • The meter is bypassed

  • Access is immediately restricted to entitled users only

• Non-flagged content continues to follow the standard meter rules

Functional Requirements

Content Classification

• Support hard paywall rules based on CMS-provided metadata, such as:

  • Single article ID

  • Category

  • Tag

• Metadata structure and keys should be configurable or clearly documented.

Access Logic

• For flagged content:

  • Anonymous users → hard paywall shown immediately

  • Logged-in but non-entitled users → hard paywall

  • Entitled users → full access

• Meter count must not increment for hard-paywalled content.

API Behavior

• API must expose:

  • Whether a piece of content is subject to a hard paywall

  • Whether access is granted or denied based on entitlement

• Decision logic must be deterministic and auditable.

JS-SDK Behavior

• SDK must:

  • Consume CMS metadata

  • Call the relevant Pelcro API to evaluate access

  • Trigger the correct paywall state (metered vs hard)

• SDK should clearly distinguish:

  • “Meter exhausted”

  • “Hard paywall – subscription required”

Out of Scope (Initial Phase)

• Admin UI for managing hard paywall rules (can be API/config only initially)

• Content preview or partial access logic

• Dynamic pricing or offer personalization tied to hard paywalled content

Definition of Done (DoD)

• ✅ Publishers can flag content as hard paywalled via CMS metadata

• ✅ Hard paywalled content always bypasses the meter

• ✅ Metered content behavior remains unchanged

• ✅ API exposes clear access decision results

• ✅ JS-SDK correctly enforces hard paywall vs meter logic

• ✅ Anonymous and authenticated user states are handled correctly

• ✅ Meter counters are not affected by hard paywalled content

• ✅ Feature is documented (API + SDK)

• ✅ Automated tests cover:

  • Metered content

  • Hard paywalled content

  • Mixed scenarios (same user, different content types)

Business Impact

• Unlocks premium content monetization

• Allows publishers to protect and price exclusive journalism

• Improves conversion by keeping the meter as a funnel while safeguarding high-value assets

• Aligns Pelcro with industry-standard paywall strategies used by leading media organizations