When thelondonpaper ceases publication in the autumn thousands of evening commuters will mourn the loss of their daily dose of gossip, complete with photos of celebrities stumbling out of nightclubs in the early hours of the morning.

Commuters will still be able to pick up a copy of the paper's evening rival, the London Lite, or the morning Metro, but industry watchers wonder whether News International's decision to close the lossmaking paper is a sign that the free model is no longer viable.