Times are tough for magazines and newspapers, people are dropping subscriptions, advertising dollars are fading. Several newspapers have folded up, as well as a lot of great magazines. I subscribe to multiple magazines, mainly automotive (car and driver, road & track, automobile, autoweek). A few months ago Autoweek stopped being a weekly, instead they now send out two magazines a month. I was bummed, but the result is a bigger publication that remains a favorite of mine.
I also subscribed to PC Magazine, a great monthly publication with in depth reviews of hardware and software, John Dvorak’s great column and more. I was notified earlier this year that the magazine would no longer be a printed publication, rather it would be an “online only” publication. My subscription would continue, but I would have to go to a website each month rather than read a hard copy.
So once a month I get an email telling me my magazine has “arrived”, with a link to it. I’d estimate I have read less than 50% of the magazines as a result. Something about having a hard copy on the counter or coffee table made it impossible to miss.
I’m not sure when my “subscription” will run out, but I’m afraid I’m not going to pay $14.97 for another 12 months of this. It’s a shame, as I really do like the writing and the content, just cannot stand the format.
;)
© 2009, Bill Gillam. All rights reserved.