Magazine's Special Issue to Hit Web, Not Newsstand

The Week, a weekly news magazine, is issuing a special edition about the environment. Rather than printing the special issue and distributing it via mail and newsstands, it will be posting the issue on its website for one week beginning April 20.

Because trees will not be as endangered by the online posting, this method fits nicely with their environmental theme. Furthermore, The Week hopes that this will help expand their online presence in a world that is shifting to mixed media.

The idea has also proven enticing to advertisers. Lexus will be the sole sponsor for the special issue, for which they will also receive a series of print ads after the special edition.

The Week says, “ we’re trying to be as agnostic as possible about serving our readers in all the different media.” Consumers are becoming more finicky about how they want content and magazines like The Week that want to accommodate are presenting in multiple formats.

Despite the plethora of media formats available today, I’m still skeptical that print will ever go away completely. There are still a number of places where it makes sense to leverage print, at least for now.

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Online Experiment for Print Magazine

Media Loves Second Life

I admit it. I’m obsessed with Second Life. Not as a participant, mind you. I’ve spent very little time in its virtual world. Rather I am boggled by the concept and its media attention. Here are just a few of the latest headlines:

Second Life's looming tax threat

Does Your Business Need a Second Life?

How I Did It: Philip Rosedale, CEO, Linden Lab

In a virtual world, an actual job may be waiting (see my post entitled Job Seekers Need Not Leave Second Life)

New Portal to Second Life: Your Phone

That’s quite a buzz. The first article, Second Life's looming tax threat, discusses the possibility of government taxing on money earned in Second Life, which has quite a bustling economy. Among the ideas for taxing is leaving Linden dollars untaxed, but taxing the U.S. dollars equivalent when cashed out. I have little doubt that taxation will occur in the future. Income earned on the Internet is still income. Earnings from eBay must be reported to the government; Second Life will follow.

Visitors are doing more than just socializing in Second Life, or at least businesses hope they are. Companies are setting up virtual shops, including Second Life as part of their marketing strategy. An auto company lets avatars test drive cars. Recruiting firms are conducting virtual job interviews. These businesses are hoping to create enough buzz in the virtual world to increase their reach in the real world.

What is it about Second Life that has made it so popular and, for some, lucrative? What is the draw for consumers to spend time in Second Life?