Magazines May Not be Rescued by the iPad
April 13, 2010
If you are a magazine, don’t expect the iPad to be your knight in shining armor.
While there is a lot of hubbub in the print industry about the many possibilities of the iPad to rejuvenate dying magazine sales, things don’t look so rosy upon closer inspection. TBI Research recently posted an interesting story, “Here is Why the iPad Won’t Save the Magazine Industry” listing the many ways this new technology will let down the magazine business.
For starters, magazines are planning on charging higher prices for digital issues than print, in some cases $15 a month. But an even bigger hurdle for this industry is the massive amount of free, searchable information available. For any topic imaginable, iPad users will be able to seek out low cost and free resources and directly skip costly magazine subscriptions. Doesn’t sound much like a savior to us.
Patrick Roland, April 13, 2010
A freebie.
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One Response to “Magazines May Not be Rescued by the iPad”
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I think you have a good point but its not as black and white picture as you paint. Apple are also adding “emotional” adverts to their offerings, so it does not all have to be subscription based or at least high subscriptions. Also the quality of the Apple Magazine will be significantly better than that delivered through an ordinary website. The difference between a glossy magazine and a simple newpaper. So I think the industry will adjust to these new mechanisms. The reality is that the change will not be overnight, it will take time to shape. But I do think there is money to be made here for those that get it right.