You have the features. But migration anxiety keeps you locked in. Publishers already have OTP, metered loginwall, social login, and multi-layered security.
Yet many stay with current systems because migration feels risky, disruptive, and expensive. Here's how that anxiety is overblown and how modern migration actually works.
TL;DR:
Modern IAM migration is painless: no password resets, no user disruption. And once you switch, systems like Bridgekeeper give you faster logins, social/OTP options, multi-domain SSO, and secure sessions that work across all your brands to ensure a smoother experience for readers and a stronger setup for your newsroom.
Will readers have to reset passwords when we migrate?
No. Not with modern systems.
Your existing system uses certain password hashing formats. Modern IAM platforms simply accept these formats during migration. Readers log in with existing passwords and gain immediate access, just as before.
Result:
✓ Zero forced password resets
✓ Zero reset emails flooding inboxes
✓ Zero support tickets about forgotten passwords
✓ Readers never notice the migration happened
That's it. Migration happens invisibly while your readers keep reading.
Modern IAM platforms let you enhance how readers authenticate, giving them a choice while reducing friction. These authentication methods have become standard across forward-thinking news organizations.
Social Login (Google, Apple, Facebook)
Readers sign in with one tap using accounts they already have. 80% of users prefer this to passwords. Signup conversion increases significantly, especially on mobile.
OTP (One-Time Password)
Send readers a temporary code via SMS or email instead of passwords. Increases subscription conversion by 52% and reduces abandonment by 68% versus password-only login.
Metered Loginwall
Readers access 3–5 free articles, then register for more. Quick registration captures them as known users. You now understand their reading interests, content preferences, and behavior patterns. This first-party data powers personalization and predictive analytics.
Single Sign-On (SSO)
One login provides seamless access across your main site, app, premium portal, newsletters. Readers don't need multiple passwords. You see unified reader activity.
Bottom Line: Migration preserves your readers' seamless access while giving you flexibility to enhance authentication afterward. Your readers won't notice you switched systems. They'll just notice login got easier.
While the earlier sections explain why publishers should move to modern IAMs, this section shows what a modern IAM actually offers, using Bridgekeeper, Quintype’s authentication system, as a real-world example.
Bridgekeeper isn’t just an “IAM."
It’s a modern login and access system built specifically for publishers who run across multiple domains, apps, and premium experiences.
Here’s how it works.
1. One User, Many Sites. Realm-based Multi Domain Login
Most publishers today run more than one brand or domain. Bridgekeeper handles this through something called a realm:
A realm contains all domains that belong to one publisher.
If a user signs up on one domain, they’re automatically recognized on all others.
No duplicate accounts. No fragmented data. No lost sessions.
For instance, if a publisher runs en.news.com, magazine.news.com, and kids.news.com, all three can be part of the same realm.
A user logged in on one automatically stays logged in across all.
This is the backbone of a frictionless, cross-property reader experience.
2. Flexible Signup Options: Form Login + Social Login
Bridgekeeper’s signup system is built for modern reader behavior:
Traditional form-based signup
Social login via Google, Facebook, LinkedIn
Ability to support both for the same user
When a user signs up, Bridgekeeper returns a secure 'qt-auth' session token (unless the publisher chooses not to auto-login).
3. Strong, Secure Login Sessions Using JWT Tokens
Bridgekeeper uses industry-standard 'JWT tokens' to validate user sessions.
What this means for publishers:
Sessions stay fast and secure
Tokens cannot be accessed by frontend JavaScript
Tokens travel automatically with HTTPS calls
Every domain in the realm respects the same login session
Users stay logged in smoothly, and developers avoid the headache of manually managing session states.
4. Built-in Cross-App Authentication (With Accesstype)
Publishers rarely use one system. They use CMS, paywall, commenting systems, apps, newsletters and more.
Bridgekeeper provides integration tokens so these systems can authenticate the same user without forcing another login.
This makes SSO not just a feature, but a smooth, multi-product experience.
5. Session Management: Control How Many Devices a User Can Stay Logged Into
Modern IAMs need to balance convenience and security.
Bridgekeeper tracks every device, every browser and every active session per user and lets publishers enforce limits (e.g., premium subscribers can stay logged in only on X devices).
The '/kick' endpoint instantly logs out other devices, keeping accounts secure.
This is especially valuable for subscription publishers where account sharing reduces revenue.
6. True Single Sign-On (SSO) Built for Publishers
Bridgekeeper has end-to-end SSO support that:
Lets the login UI live on a centralized 'auth domain'
Sets login cookies across all domains in the realm
Lets users navigate from one brand to another without logging in again
Supports custom redirects (welcome page, OTP page, onboarding, etc.)
Bridgekeeper includes sso-signup, login, session validation and authentication for auto-SSO across domains which effectively means that your readers sign in once, and everything else “just works.”
7. Auto-SSO: Login Once, Stay Logged In Everywhere
If a user logs in at mainnews.com and then visits sportsnews.com (same realm), Bridgekeeper detects an existing session and automatically sets a login cookie on the new domain and redirects the users to where they intended to go.
No login pages, no friction and no extra steps. It’s invisible, fast, and exactly what users expect.
8. Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
For publishers that need elevated security (B2B, premium access, internal dashboards), Bridgekeeper supports 2FA which is an extra layer of protection without complicating the reader journey.
Bringing it together, Bridgekeeper checks off every requirement discussed earlier in the article:
Bridgekeeper embodies everything modern IAMs promise:
unified login
frictionless reader experience
multi-domain SSO
cross-system authentication
secure session handling
publisher-specific workflows
seamless migration
And it does this without interrupting your readers or breaking your existing traffic flows.
Modern IAM migration is no longer something to fear. With password-preserving methods, seamless session handling, and cross-domain flexibility, switching platforms happens quietly in the background while your readers continue as usual.
Get in touch with us if you need help or more info on migrating, we'd be glad to help out.