Magazines are changing, as most forms of media must. The digital age has arrived. Some newspapers are struggling with just how much content to replicate online, how it might be differentiated from print and whether people should pay for it.
Magazines face similar, though not identical challenges. On the web we expect daily content and immediate news. It's not for nothing that the BBC has such a hugely successful website - it can draw on, and publish, content all over the world. The Guardian website now derives more than half its readers from the United States. Being able to draw readers from around the world is a major advantage of the online model.
It is possible for print magazines to exist harmoniously with the digital world — it's just a question of how. A recent article in the Economist tracked the decline in magazine readership in a number of countries. The article concluded that magazines, while not doing it as tough as newspapers, are also having to re-invent their revenue models, and their content.
The advertising model for online is one of the things holding online publications back. While up to 35 per cent of media is now consumed online in Australia, the commensurate amount of advertising money spent is only around 10 per cent. This, combined with people's expectation that web content should be free, means that the numbers don't yet add up. In the long term the revenue models will be worked out. In the short term, many magazines are doing it tough.
It's difficult to say when the numbers will begin add up. In the meantime, many are looking to sites such as New Matilda, Crikey, and yes, Eureka Street. All are making a go of it as online-only publications. This prompts further examination of the online model.
It has been a challenging time for our readers. Many were convinced that a move online meant a diminution in quality. I would like to think it has not been the case.
We still have university lecturers, senators, and authors writing for us, and even the winner of last year's Gold Walkley award. We are still winning awards for our work, too.
The other encouraging aspect of the move online has been the rise in readership. We now have four times the readership we had in print - with up to a quarter of them coming from overseas.
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