Content Will Only Appear Online Now
Bonnier Corporation chose to end the print version of Motorcyclist Magazine. Dealer News recently reported on the fact that the magazine will no longer put out a print publication. You’ll no longer be able to go into a convenience store and grab yourself a copy.
The move to digital is not a surprising one. Print magazines and newspapers have been dying off at an alarming rate for years now. Bonnier Corporation recently shut down the print version of Hot Bike, too, and I wondered if it would only be a matter of time before the corporation’s other motorcycle publications saw the same treatment.
It’s a shame. I remember reading Motorcyclist Magazine as a kid. I’d flip through the pages of those magazines time after time even after I’d read the stories. It’s sad to see print disappear, but it makes sense. People want their content digitally.
Motorcyclist Magazine can reach more readers online, and that’s why Bonnier Corporation shut down the print. I hope Bonnier reinvests in Motorcyclist Magazine and really goes all out on the digital side of things. If they’re not going to put out a print publication, they’d better give the folks that put out the content there the resources to really kill it. It’ll be interesting to see how Motorcyclist Magazine changes moving forward.
Not everyone wants their content digitally. I subscribed to both Motorcyclist and Cycle World before they went quarterly. I like reading from paper. Still hoping that Rider continues to survive through paper media.
Motorcyclist magazine changed greatly about two years ago.It went to six issues a year and changed to a larger format.Bigger pages with larger pictures.It also changed from it’s usual content which was similar to Rider magazine.I thought it used to be a bit better than Rider.I think most folks have an aversion to change especially when they like the way things currently are.I didn’t like the new Motorcyclist ,but,as I read more of the articles I began to enjoy the content.The writing was good.Fine writers.The content was way different than the old format.I wasn’t interested in many of the subjects that were in the new version.It seemed to be targeting a younger audience.I’m not going to complain about changes.The publishers know more about magazines then I do.Or shall I say they know how to sell magazines which is what it’s all about.
Hey Mark, I think the shift will continue, especially now that they’re going totally digital. It will be interesting to see how the Motorcyclist Magazine website continues to develop.
I love print magazines and subscribe to numerous ones in different genre’s. I felt Motorcyclists new format was an attempt to create a coffee table mag for Hipsters new to motorcycling, but it was getting better every month. Having taken advantage of a multi-year subscription offer I best be getting some cash back.
Coming from a newspaper background, I hate to see the shift to digital distribution. I know that change is inevitable, but there’s something reassuring about being able to dog ear a favorite issue or article. I liked the redesign; I hoped it would breathe life into the print edition. Guess I’ll break out the iPad now.
There is something nice about holding and feeling the paper of a print magazine, but there is no denying digital is more convenient, and bookmarking a page on a website is as easy as dog-earing a page in a magazine. I’m sad to see the print issue go because I think part of the experience of reading is lost, but the digital world comes with its own upsides.
Something lost in this discussion is the fact that Bonnier owns both Motorcyclist and Cycle World, two “publications” that are nearly identical in the type of content and their readership. With this digital downsizing of Motorcyclist and the fact that Cycle world also has a digital presence but is only print-published quarterly leads to the ultimate conclusion of further consolidation, just like with the shuttering of Sport Rider (also owned by Bonnier).
The sad truth is that more than the rise of online publishing, it was the Great Recession that sucked the life out of print media as a whole, a dark time from which the magazine world has never — and will never — recover.
Good point, I would assume Cycle World will follow suit eventually. Maybe one print publication put out quarterly is the right balance right now? I hope Cycle World keeps putting out its print issue, though, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it disappear.
The other side is that I’m able to archive a lot more digital material, without any of the clutter. I realize that motorcyclists, in general, are not on the front side of the adoption curve. But I think we need to look at the opportunities that technology change brings to us instead of pining for old days that have past. The IT revolution started while I was in grade school in the 1960s and the mobilization of technology does provide some upside. Yes, I still read books and magazines, but I read more and more from LCD screens using Windows 10 and Android platforms.