Wikipedia's article on the subscription business model states only that the model 'was pioneered by publishers of books and periodicals in the 17th century', with no specific year, title or publisher named. Writing an origin-year property here would either invent false precision or have to be left unwritten; this open question records the gap honestly instead.
What would resolve this A source naming the specific periodical, book series or publisher credited as the first subscription offering, with a year, so this entity could carry an honest origin-year fact instead of only the century-level claim.
OpenWikipedia, Subscription Business Model