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BloggingStocks writer John Ogg recently reported on Time Warner's decision to discontinue the print publication of Life, which has had some of the most famous magazine covers in history, including the shot of Marylin Monroe pictured here.
While that magazine has been struggling (and going in and out of print) for decades, there is a certain degree of symbolism in its downfall: Once one of the most read magazines in the world Life, like the print media in general, has faced increased competition for internet sources.
The reason that it has gone out of print, ultimately, is that the Time Warner executives in charge of the magazine were unable to answer this question: Why should I buy a copy of Life instead of getting similar content on the internet?
It's a question that virtually every print publication is struggling with. Even the ones who find temporary solutions will continue to have to deal with it as information on the internet gets better and better.
Even Encyclopedia Britannica is feeling the heat and, believe it or not, Wikipedia is catching up in terms of accuracy. According to a Nature piece from 2005, Wikipedia is very close to Britannica in terms of accuracy. In a comparison of 42 randomly selected science-related articles, "Only eight serious errors, such as misinterpretations of important concepts, were detected in the pairs of articles reviewed, four from each encyclopedia. But reviewers also found many factual errors, omissions or misleading statements: 162 and 123 in Wikipedia and Britannica, respectively." With continuing innovation at Wikipedia, that margin has likely narrowed significantly in the year and a few months since that study.
Celebrity gossip magazines like US Weekly and In Touch will likely face pressure from blogs like PerezHilton.com, which is updated numerous times throughout the day and, frankly, provides much funnier, more interesting commentary on the rich and famous.
There has been talk that several major newspapers should stop producing print publications altogether, and like Life, go online-exclusive. Long-term, this seems likely to happen. As Warren Buffett has said, every time an elderly person dies, that is a newspaper reader who will not be replaced.
In analyzing any old media stocks you might own or be researching, remember to always ask yourself this question: Why should I buy a copy of ____ instead of getting similar content on the internet?
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