FT.com, the internet arm of the Financial Times, will on Monday announce an innovative charging system and a major expansion of the site, fuelling debate about newspapers’ online business models.

Newspapers have until now chosen between offering their content free, or charging on a subscription or “pay-per-view” basis. But Ien Cheng, publisher of FT.com, said the site would pioneer a new approach from mid-October. Articles and data will be free to users up to a total of 30 views a month. They will then be asked to subscribe for access to more material.