Digital Media Continues It's Assault on Paper Publications

http://www.marketingvox.com/the-so-called-hulu-for-digital-magazines-launches-050918/

As print sales continue to decline, Next Issue Media, a joint venture formed by Conde Nast, Hearst, Meredith, News Corp. and Time, launched a tablet App consisting of some top magazine titles. Among these magazine titles are Better Homes and Gardens, Elle, Esquire, Fortune, Glamour Parents, People, Real Simple, Sports Illustrated, The New Yorker, TIME, and Vanity Fair. Users can access one or all of these magazine titles for a single price.

There will likely always be a market for individuals that simply enjoy picking up a magazine and leafing through the pages. However,  hardware and software applications like Kindle and the above referenced HULU continue to offer subscribers the simplicity of instant download and the convenience of having access to a dozen magazines without carrying a briefcase to store them.

For some users the issue will be simply one of familiarity. Many people try out a product like Kindle or the Barnes and Noble Nook, but don't immediately have a love connection with the tablet format of reading. This is due in part, because it may not be what they have become accustomed to over the years. Many older users are used to taking a highlighter or a pen directly to the page, whereas, tablet and mobile applications require a little more work. Another annoyance to readers of digital publications is that there is some difficulty relocating that one page where you remember reading about a particular topic. Print magazine readers may fan through the pages to find that particular article, whereas the tablet will require a little more time and patience.

Undoubtedly, the digital media industry is vigorously working to address these consumer preferences by allowing bookmarking and search options, as well as color publications like those available on Amazon's Kindle Fire. The newer generation of readers will grow up reading there publications through digital mediums and print publications will continue to shrink dramatically, but likely, never completely go away.