Print Magazines will follow the path of plastic records
Bob Sacks of The Precision Media Group did a nice article on a new/old topic.. "Print Magazines will Follow the Path of the Plastic Record" (http://www.pubexec.com/story/story.bsp?sid=64337&var=story) . The million dollar question is.. will print fade into the digital sunset? or will we still want that Maxim or Sports Illustrated magazine for our daily bathroom visit? I'm a firm believer that until we discontinue teaching with paper props and methodologies we will always have a inclination to read and consumer materials via paper products.
This is changing dramatically with the latest generation (see my past articles on the Generations) as children are learning to type at a young age. My 8 year old now has a typing game and I have no doubts she'll hit 50 wpm by the time she's 12. I was a ripe 17-18 before I really knew much about computers and I learned on a typewriter, not with a cool exploratory game.
Sacks brings out a nice analogy to the print world and plastic records, saying, much like the plastic records that were virtually replaced by CD's and then by MP3s, there was a transition with each new medium and there will always endure a traditional audience loyal to that medium. Try taking the sunday paper out of my father's hands and replacing it with a laptop, that won't happen. But our lives are already changing.. I get my news through TV and Internet now, rarely paper.
Time and Place Shifting are the biggest contributors while globalization is driving the demand. Will the magazine of today be but an archive, directory or collector's item of tomorrow?
Here's a quick snapshot of his article, he lays out the chronology of print as well for those that need a background.
"In the 21st century, we have a new breed of craftsmanship learning an ever-widening path of information distribution. Where once the written word only was available as ink on paper, we now have a universe of distribution models and methods. There is a debate in our industry about the life and/or death of the printed page. In my opinion, it is an unnecessary debate.
Let me use the music industry as an example. Once, the recorded music industry depended on pressed plastic--records--to reproduce music. Then in 1982, the CD was launched. There were years of transition as the listening public graduated to the new storage system. Now we have MP3s, and the same transformation is taking place. Did you know that there are still audiophiles that cling to the old records as preferable? They are known as the "collectors." And yes, there is still an industry that supports them.
To bring that perspective to the magazine industry, I think we always will have printed magazines, much like we still have plastic records. But the majority of readers eventually will move on to the digital delivery of the printed word with new technology and a globally instant reach. Dead trees with type on them always will be available to the collectors who can afford them, while the general mass of the reading public most likely will pull out their e-paper, and read anything and everything they want to their hearts' content. It's not a matter of if, it's only a matter of when."
You can access his article at: (http://www.pubexec.com/story/story.bsp?sid=64337&var=story)
This is changing dramatically with the latest generation (see my past articles on the Generations) as children are learning to type at a young age. My 8 year old now has a typing game and I have no doubts she'll hit 50 wpm by the time she's 12. I was a ripe 17-18 before I really knew much about computers and I learned on a typewriter, not with a cool exploratory game.
Sacks brings out a nice analogy to the print world and plastic records, saying, much like the plastic records that were virtually replaced by CD's and then by MP3s, there was a transition with each new medium and there will always endure a traditional audience loyal to that medium. Try taking the sunday paper out of my father's hands and replacing it with a laptop, that won't happen. But our lives are already changing.. I get my news through TV and Internet now, rarely paper.
Time and Place Shifting are the biggest contributors while globalization is driving the demand. Will the magazine of today be but an archive, directory or collector's item of tomorrow?
Here's a quick snapshot of his article, he lays out the chronology of print as well for those that need a background.
"In the 21st century, we have a new breed of craftsmanship learning an ever-widening path of information distribution. Where once the written word only was available as ink on paper, we now have a universe of distribution models and methods. There is a debate in our industry about the life and/or death of the printed page. In my opinion, it is an unnecessary debate.
Let me use the music industry as an example. Once, the recorded music industry depended on pressed plastic--records--to reproduce music. Then in 1982, the CD was launched. There were years of transition as the listening public graduated to the new storage system. Now we have MP3s, and the same transformation is taking place. Did you know that there are still audiophiles that cling to the old records as preferable? They are known as the "collectors." And yes, there is still an industry that supports them.
To bring that perspective to the magazine industry, I think we always will have printed magazines, much like we still have plastic records. But the majority of readers eventually will move on to the digital delivery of the printed word with new technology and a globally instant reach. Dead trees with type on them always will be available to the collectors who can afford them, while the general mass of the reading public most likely will pull out their e-paper, and read anything and everything they want to their hearts' content. It's not a matter of if, it's only a matter of when."
You can access his article at: (http://www.pubexec.com/story/story.bsp?sid=64337&var=story)
I tend to disagree. Yes, the magazine industry will continue to lose it print subscription base as the younger generations mature however there will always be a solid demand for magazines. Why? For starters not everyone loves reading on a computer all the time or wants to print everything they want to read, or worse for email marketers wants 20 different commercial emails sent to them daily. I personally suffer from eyestrain too often and welcome print regularly.
The convenience and simplicity of print will allow it the medium to continue. As you stated before print can be taken anywhere anytime without any problems. Finally people sometime like a world where they can’t just find what they are looking for. I have read many great articles through the print form of Sports Illustrated by reading cover to cover.
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I grew up with newspapers in my home and I still enjoy reading a the Sunday paper or a good magazine for relaxation. I can't read while on the eliptical or riding a stationery bike or many things we still do to relax/workout.
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