Print is Dead: Books in Our Digital Age

Right on the heels of the debut of Conde Nast’s new business publication Portfolio, Mediaweek has an article by Lucia Moses entitled “Web-Only Titles: Real Business or Face Saver?,” which takes a look at the increasing trend of print magazines going out of business while retaining their brand with a website. “When Time Inc. killed off Teen People last July but decided to continue publishing it online,” writes Moses, “the move made sense to some observers, given teen media usage habits. Nearly a year later, though, the site’s audience size has dwindled to 218,000 uniques, according to comScore Media Metrics, and by the end of this month, TeenPeople.com will be absorbed by People.com.”

All of this sort of begs the question: when is success determined the brand and when is it determined by the format? Because some brands based on former magazines are doing well. Writes Moses: “Other magazines, however, continue to forge ahead with Web-only brands. Hachette Filipacchi Media’s Elle Girl and Premiere, Emap’s FHM, Time Inc.’s Life and Meredith Corp.’s Child have all maintained an online presence despite having folded the title.” In fact, scenarios like this prove that formats, even virtual ones, are not the answer; a magazine may be a bust online the same way it was in print (or vice versa). But formats, in-and-of themselves, are not the answer. Instead, brands will live and die by consumer interest, wherever that consumer interest happens to manifest itself.

Mediaweek: Web-Only Titles: Real Business or Face Saver?