# Several print magazines ceasing publication



## libro (Dec 3, 2008)

For those of you who subscribe to magazines, have you noticed lately that a lot of magazines are ceasing publication, presumably due to the weak economy?  I receive the last issue with a card saying that they're ceasing publication and the remainder of my issues will be transferred to "X" magazine (they choose by default) unless I state otherwise whether I want a refund or a different magazine.  

Today it was Country Home magazine that announced it was ceasing publication....and that magazine has been around a long time.


----------



## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

hmmm...I haven't noticed. Stopped subscribing to magazine a year ago. 
Of course, I used to subscribe to manga (japanese comics) magazines like:









when I think about it....I've noticed my mom isn't getting as many magazines as she used to.


----------



## rho (Feb 12, 2009)

libro said:


> For those of you who subscribe to magazines, have you noticed lately that a lot of magazines are ceasing publication, presumably due to the weak economy? I receive the last issue with a card saying that they're ceasing publication and the remainder of my issues will be transferred to "X" magazine (they choose by default) unless I state otherwise whether I want a refund or a different magazine.
> 
> Today it was Country Home magazine that announced it was ceasing publication....and that magazine has been around a long time.


Of course it would be Country Home since I just renewed a few months ago for 2 years -- what did they offer in its place?


----------



## libro (Dec 3, 2008)

Country Home (started publishing in 1986!) offered Better Homes & Gardens in its place. I'm not happy with that, so I'm going to call them. Thanks for the reminder because I renewed for 2 years as well. Sad to see such a longstanding magazine go under.

Here's an article from Advertising Age (1/28/09) describing the most recent magazines to cease publication. Some are quite surprising:
In Just January? We're Up to Six Titles That Have Closed

Cottage Living is also among my subscriptions that ceased publication and was one of my favorite magazines, along with Mary Engelbreit Home Companion, which also ceased after many years.

I noticed the other day that Cosmopolitan was available on Amazon (limited time offer) for only $5.00 for one year, nearly the price of one issue alone. I'm sure anyone who wants certain magazine subscriptions has a lot of bargaining power with magazine publishers, but that's no help for the American economy, nor is it a guarantee the magazine will keep publishing for the entire year. Distressing to think of all the people out of work.


----------



## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Disney Adventure magazine stopped publishing over a year ago.  It was a great magazine for kids and had a built-in audience since it was a school fund-raiser selection.  We were very disappointed.


----------



## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

PC Magazine quit last month as well, it is only available online.


----------



## libro (Dec 3, 2008)

pidgeon92 said:


> PC Magazine quit last month as well, it is only available online.


When I saw PC Magazine in the list of "ceased publications" in Ad Age this month, I was shocked. I presume a lot of active blogs were taking away from print magazine subscriptions as well.


----------



## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

I stopped buying magazines a long time ago.  They're expensive, filled with ads and those annoying postcards, and you have to keep flipping to the back pages to finish a story.  

Then there's the clutter.  Maybe there is one article I would like to read again or keep for reference, but I never get around to clipping it out and filing it.  So I end up with stacks of useless magazines.  

When I moved four years ago, I was shocked at how many magazines I had accumulated.  They all went into the trash.  Our recycling only takes newspapers.  When I moved again two years ago, I only had a couple of magazines to get rid of and I dropped them off at the doctor's office.


----------



## marianneg (Nov 4, 2008)

pidgeon92 said:


> PC Magazine quit last month as well, it is only available online.


I hate that. I never get around to reading it online. And if I wanted it online, I would read it for free on the website, not this stupid zinio thing.


----------



## Lindalkcruise (Nov 11, 2008)

My DNL places ad's in magazines, I know they have laid off several people where she work's and she's worried. She took the test last week to become a 911 operator in the town she lives in, so she's looking around. I only get a few free magazine's that I received from buying something from Amazon. And O that I pay for.


----------



## LDB (Oct 28, 2008)

PC magazine is no more than 1/3 or maybe only 1/4 the size it was in it's heyday. Of course that was back in the day of Dr. Dobbs Journal etc. also.


----------



## rho (Feb 12, 2009)

libro said:


> Country Home (started publishing in 1986!) offered Better Homes & Gardens in its place. I'm not happy with that, so I'm going to call them. Thanks for the reminder because I renewed for 2 years as well. Sad to see such a longstanding magazine go under.
> 
> Cottage Living is also among my subscriptions that ceased publication and was one of my favorite magazines (they substituted Martha Stewart Living).


Sounds like we like the same magazine -- Cottage Living is another that I have and just renewed at the same time as Country Home - and I do not want Martha Stewart Living -- ugh ... I could live with Better Homes and Gardens at least - and although I don't get it I am surprised to see that O is also on that list.

well shoot!


----------



## libro (Dec 3, 2008)

rho said:


> Sounds like we like the same magazine -- Cottage Living is another that I have and just renewed at the same time as Country Home - and I do not want Martha Stewart Living -- ugh ... I could live with Better Homes and Gardens at least - and although I don't get it I am surprised to see that O is also on that list.
> 
> well shoot!


I want to correct an error I posted earlier -- Cottage Living was NOT substituted with Martha Stewart Living. It was my other "ceased publication," Mary Engelbreit Home Companion, that was substituted for Martha Stewart Living, presumably because they're cost comparable and both are somewhat similar. I don't believe my Cottage Living was substituted because it was naturally my last issue and I hadn't gotten around to renewing. For any "substitute" magazines I get that I don't want, all I have to do is call the publisher and ask for another magazine they publish or a refund. It's more alarming in that I believe it's a sign of the times that such long-standing publications are going belly up.


----------



## rho (Feb 12, 2009)

libro said:


> I want to correct an error I posted earlier -- Cottage Living was NOT substituted with Martha Stewart Living.
> 
> It's more alarming in that I believe it's a sign of the times that such long-standing publications are going belly up.


Thanks -- I'm glad about that whew --

You would think that in these times people would be doing more hunkering down in the home and that those magazines would be the ones that would sell the best. Oh well -- saw today that the stock market hit a low that it hasn't seen since 1997 - No way am I going to check any of our stocks or 401k info -- I would be canceling my Kindle -- ya right


----------



## Malibama (Jan 29, 2009)

Over the past few months I have received notices that my subscriptions have been stopped to the following magazines who have ceased publication:

1.  DOMINO (RIP, I loved you, you were my favorite magazine!)
2.  RADAR 
3.  HEALING LIFESTYLES AND SPA

and

4.  COUNTRY WEEKLY (now only available at newsstands which does me no good since I haven't found a single newsstand in the Los Angeles area that carries it)

I bet there are more to come.  My husband is THRILLED - less paper in the house!


----------



## libro (Dec 3, 2008)

Here's an 1/29/09 article from Advertising Age listing the most recent magazines to cease publication. The article lists all magazines that have ceased publication since 3/08, but states that 6 magazines ceased publication in 1/09 alone.

ADVERTISING AGE 1/28/09: GUIDE TO MAGAZINES THAT HAVE CEASED PUBLICATION 

If you subscribe to any of these magazines that recently ceased publication, they will automatically transfer your subscription to a "related" (content and price) magazine that they publish. This may not always be what you want. In some cases I was okay with the transfer (O at Home transferred to my O Magazine subscription).

I had 3 issues of Cottage Living remaining and received only ONE issue of Sunset in exchange. I told them that was unacceptable and was offered other magazines they published I had no interest in. The highest refund offered was just over $1 (since I only paid $12.00/yr.). I worked with the representative and he gave me a total of 4 extra Sunset issues, hoping to entice me to subscribe (I won't).

I had 10 issues of Engelbreit Home Companion remaining that they were transferring to Martha Stewart Living, so I asked for a $17.00 refund there. You can really bargain with the publishers now, some magazines more than others, even asking for combo offers that reduce the price further. With my new K2, though, I'll only be reading a couple magazines and not renewing others.


----------



## hazeldazel (Oct 30, 2008)

also Christian Science Monitor has gone to online-only.  I'm guessing the weak economy plus the high price of paper and gas tipped a lot of borderline publications.


----------

