The Cost Of A Magazine

June 18th, 2009

by John R. Sedivy

Recently I had picked up the June issue of Wired at Barnes and Noble and just finished reading it from cover to cover. I used to read Wired once upon a time, especially when I would travel extensively during my corporate gigs. Although it has been some time since I had read Wired, I had always enjoyed the magazine due to it’s fun nature, reporting on all things high-tech, and it’s high quality look and feel. What made me pick up this particular issue was the cover story – “The New Economy,” with subheadings of “Detroit Re-imagined,” “Socialism Redefined,” and “Googlenomics Explained.” For those who have not read this yet, I highly recommend picking up a copy – definitely relevant and interesting.

Cost Of Print
Reading this issue rekindled my interest in Wired and made me consider the subscription option – this is what really floored me. The cost of this single magazine at the bookstore (excluding tax) was $4.99. A one year subscription is $10! Yes you read this right – for roughly the price of two magazines I can purchase a subscription for the entire year – this does not even include the free gift they include. The cost of a two year subscription is $16.

Normally I don’t purchase subscriptions as I don’t always have the time to read magazines on a regular basis. What has occurred in the past is that they end up piling up in my home and I end up throwing away an unread stack – this goes for newspapers as well. However given the price – if I only read two the whole year I have recouped the cost of the subscription – I’m sold!

Why So Inexpensive?
I’m not sure how the economics work here, but I may have an idea. I just read a New York Times article called “Even Forbes Is Pinching Pennies”. In this article they discuss how even Forbes – a symbol and mainstay of Capitalism is suffering during the down economy and is liquidating assets as a result. The author of the article David Carr states the following:

“Although circulation has been basically stable at about 920,000, the average price per issue on subscriptions has been dropping steadily, which means Forbes — like a lot of magazines — is fighting to hang on to its subscribers.”

This statement may hold some insight into why the Wired subscription is so inexpensive. I am not sure if the same holds true for Wired, but it is a reasonable assumption given the state of the economy, and the recent news on how print publications are suffering due to blogs and other forms of online media. It has been some time since I have been a regular subscriber to a magazine, with exception to those I receive as gifts, so I am not sure exactly how much the prices are decreasing.

The Case For Print Media
Like many nowadays I enjoy a majority of my news and other information online. However, as I spend more time working at my computer and online in general it is nice to unplug and read something offline, or even off a computer screen. Especially prior to falling asleep I like to take about an hour and read a magazine or book. This is where I find value in print media, especially magazines such as Wired.

Wired is one of those fun magazines which has a nice blend of serious and entertaining articles. For the most part I even enjoy the advertising as they seem to be well positioned. Whenever I finish reading this magazine I feel informed, yet I had fun doing so. Wired also has a nice look and feel, thicker cover and nice colors – to me it’s a blast to read, refreshing in a way.

This is where I believe print media fits in. My guess is that not everyone will want to be plugged in 24/7 – especially as the Internet takes over more of our lives. Print media should focus on the overall user experience – how does the magazine feel in a person’s hands? Is it a pleasure to read and fun to flip through, or just another magazine on the shelf? Sure my guess is that in general print media is on the decline, however I believe there is room for growth in this area. The trick will be how to differentiate print from electronic media.

Given the reduced cost of magazine subscriptions there are opportunities to pick up great content at low cost!