4 ms·

I don't get Wired's strategy. It seems now they're doing anything for readers- you can get a year subscription for $3.99 (if you find a good deal online), and

I don't get Wired's strategy. It seems now they're doing anything for readers- you can get a year subscription for $3.99 (if you find a good deal online), and they go with controversial covers like naked women and proclamations that "The Web Is Dead." Why can't they charge a bit more for a subscription ($36/year is still only $3/issue), and publish much higher quality content? I'd rather pay more for quality than read what they currently mail out every month.

aneth 16y ago
Because their money comes from advertisers, not subscribers.
jbarciauskas 16y ago
I don't think the 3.99 price is a signal of any kind of desperation. I read recently, I wish I could remember where, that subscription and newsstand sales make a smaller portion of magazine revenue when compared to ads. Publishers would give them away for free to push up their circulation and thereby their ad rates, except advertisers discount ads placed in free publications. So publishers run all kinds of special promotions to push up circulation without appearing to cheapen their product to their advertisers. That's one possible explanation, or it could be simple price segmentation - offering different prices through different channels to increase overall revenue.
nkurz 16y ago
Presuming this is a real question, it's a matter of economics. Magazines like Wired make most of their money from advertising. They've judged, likely correctly, that if they charge more for subscriptions, they will lose more profit than they gain. Magazines are closing down left and right. Wired is still in business because they have resorted to cheap tricks like "sex sells". While I applaud subscribers deciding they aren't going to put up with this any longer, I think you'd be mistaken if you think they could make more money by doing anything else.

4 ms·

I don't get Wired's strategy. It seems now they're doing anything for readers- you can get a year subscription for $3.99 (if you find a good deal online), and

by gkoberger 16y ago

aneth 16y ago
Because their money comes from advertisers, not subscribers.
jbarciauskas 16y ago
I don't think the 3.99 price is a signal of any kind of desperation. I read recently, I wish I could remember where, that subscription and newsstand sales make a smaller portion of magazine revenue when compared to ads. Publishers would give them away for free to push up their circulation and thereby their ad rates, except advertisers discount ads placed in free publications. So publishers run all kinds of special promotions to push up circulation without appearing to cheapen their product to their advertisers. That's one possible explanation, or it could be simple price segmentation - offering different prices through different channels to increase overall revenue.
nkurz 16y ago
Presuming this is a real question, it's a matter of economics. Magazines like Wired make most of their money from advertising. They've judged, likely correctly, that if they charge more for subscriptions, they will lose more profit than they gain. Magazines are closing down left and right. Wired is still in business because they have resorted to cheap tricks like "sex sells". While I applaud subscribers deciding they aren't going to put up with this any longer, I think you'd be mistaken if you think they could make more money by doing anything else.