Is transition to online-only the kiss of death for a printed magazine?

July 27, 2011 1:40 PM

I'm looking for specific examples of special-interest magazines and magazine-style newsletters that made a transition from print-only to online-only. What happened? Did they survive and flourish, or wither and die? What factors made the difference one way or the other from your perspective as a subscriber or publisher?
posted by cairnish to media & arts (11 answers total)

Boing Boing started as a zine. Does that count? I'd say they're thriving.
posted by mumkin at 1:45 PM on July 27, 2011

Paste Magazine went entirely online in September 2010. They seem to be doing OK, though I don't have access to their accountant's books. Same great content, though.
posted by po822000 at 1:52 PM on July 27, 2011

Yes that helps and also suggests maybe some additional context. Bonus points for limited special interest or organizational publications, e.g., "BMW Izetta Club" or "Dahlia Fanciers" or "Mimes Today" or similar :-)
posted by cairnish at 1:54 PM on July 27, 2011

Alt-country magazine No Depression. It seems to be doing fairly well with discussion groups, articles, videos, a Facebook page, etc.
posted by tommasz at 1:59 PM on July 27, 2011

Gourmet stopped their print edition and went to online content, including an ipad app.
posted by nadawi at 2:03 PM on July 27, 2011

You can ask me. My zine parterre box went online only in 2003 and "survive and flourish" is a very mild way of putting what happened, I'm happy to say.
posted by La Cieca at 2:12 PM on July 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

Craft Magazine didn't make it as a printed version, but they are great online! You can google Craft Zine. (It's from the makers of Make Magazine, which is (hopefully) going strong.
posted by shortyJBot at 2:21 PM on July 27, 2011

Craft: seems to be doing very well as a now online-only concern. They've used social media and in-person events very well, which I'm sure is a big part of that.

CHOW was a very short-lived print magazine, but their online Chowhound forums seem to be thriving. Not sure if the rest of the site is though.
posted by dayintoday at 2:21 PM on July 27, 2011

Mothering Magazine recently ceased publication and now lives on as mothering.com.
posted by mattbucher at 2:29 PM on July 27, 2011

Cracked? (ducks brickbats)
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 2:45 PM on July 27, 2011

Before and After Magazine.
posted by jadepearl at 6:19 PM on July 27, 2011