NY Post: Single-issue sales of mags are plummeting

[GA Russell]

These are sales stats from the first six months of the year which I find pretty interesting.

I don't know if past customers are finding their news and gossip on the internet for free, or if something else is in play.

http://nypost.com/2014/08/08/magazine-newsstand-sales-read-it-and-weep/

[Scott Dolan]

Interesting.

I knew physical sales were way down for all print media, but I'm surprised the digital rates haven't taken off in their place.

Perhaps you're right in that people find enough of what they're looking for free online. I still have a digital subscription to The Christian Science Monitor, but nothing else anymore.

I wonder if quality has also become an issue? That was the reason I switched from The New York Times to The Christian Science Monitor.

[Leeway]

Magazines don't make much off news stand sales, although I'm sure they'll take whatever they can get. Plus, how many news stands are there? Used to be one on just about every block in NYC, or so it seemed, now very few.

Mags make their money off subscriptions. They need a subscriber base, certified circulation numbers, to sell print ads. That is where they make their money. Advertisers want to know how many subscribers and where they are located. That's why you'll get offers like 12 months for $6. The mag makes no money off the subscription, but they increase their subscriber base. If you renew your subscription, that is a big plus for the magazine. Renewals cost the nothing, and they now can make money off your subscription.

Stuff like the Enquirer do rely on news stand sales, so they keep upping the sensationalist ante to get you to pick it up at the check-out counter. .

[Shawn]

I haven't bought a newspaper or magazine in YEARS. The only paper I get regularly is the LA Weekly and it's free.

[7/4]

Magazines don't make much off news stand sales, although I'm sure they'll take whatever they can get. Plus, how many news stands are there? Used to be one on just about every block in NYC, or so it seemed, now very few.

Mags make their money off subscriptions. They need a subscriber base, certified circulation numbers, to sell print ads. That is where they make their money. Advertisers want to know how many subscribers and where they are located. That's why you'll get offers like 12 months for $6. The mag makes no money off the subscription, but they increase their subscriber base. If you renew your subscription, that is a big plus for the magazine. Renewals cost the nothing, and they now can make money off your subscription.

Stuff like the Enquirer do rely on news stand sales, so they keep upping the sensationalist ante to get you to pick it up at the check-out counter. .

Somewhat contradictory remarks.

Magazines have been dying off for years, the impact of the internet is still being felt. I don't need a music magazine to tell me what's going on in the music world anymore. Any kind of "news" magazine isn't gonna do too good these days.

Most magazines make their money off advertising. If they have big circulation numbers, they can charge more for advertising.

They have audits to certify what part of their subscriber base is actually paid.

[A Lark Ascending]

I still buy magazines. Subscriptions to Gramophone, Jazzwise and Froots; BBC Music Magazine, Mojo and The New Statesman from the paper shop.

There are loads of online sources now but I like to lol on the sofa leafing through them. Gives a general guide to new releases. Most online sources are quite tightly targeted, based on the preferences of the source. These magazines tend to be broader - I'm alerted to things I don't know about just as much as online.

Froots is the one I like best - very broad in its remit (Folk/World), open eared, focused on discovering the new rather than worshipping the canon. Remarkable in that it has kept going for 30 odd years - every other magazine in that area in Britain imploded very quickly.