CNN had no leverage to go to the pay model for CNN+. That is no surprise to me.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/21/business/cnn-plus-shuttin…
NYT
snippet
The shutdown is a stunning and ignominious end to an operation into which CNN had sunk tens of millions of dollars, from an aggressive nationwide marketing campaign to adding hundreds of new employees to hiring big, high-priced media stars, including the former “Fox News Sunday” anchor Chris Wallace and the former NPR co-host Audie Cornish.