The US edition of PC World Magazine is to cease publication. The current magazine, dated August 2013, will be the last ever print issue. The company will continue to provide computer orientated news coverage on its website and through digital editions for tablets etc. PC World magazine has been in print for 30 years and will exit the printed publication market even though it still has, according to the latest figures available, nearly 340,000 paid-up subscribers.
Harry McCracken, who worked for PC World Magazine from 1994 to 2008, as both a writer and editor, has written a piece about the demise of the printed edition from his new desk at Time Magazine. McCracken headlined his article as "PC World exits print, and the era of computer magazines ends". He introduced his piece by saying it wasn't shocking news but it really is a surprise that the printed edition has lasted so long.
Most of the biggest advertisers and a large proportion of readers have moved online years ago, McCracken said, especially the tech savvy readership of computer magazines. At their peak computer magazines were huge cash cows, there were many more of them available and magazines such as Computer Shopper, stuffed with printed ads and promotional inserts (alongside buyer guides and articles), often busted beyond 1,000 pages per issue. McCracken ended his piece by saying "as much as I once loved computer magazines, I wouldn’t trade The Verge, Engadget, All Things , [snip...] and all my other favourite tech sites to get them back". He concluded that "The golden age of computer magazines was glorious, but the golden age of computer journalism is now." You can read more of his PC World 'obituary' on Time's website. Also it will no doubt be printed in the next Time Magazine on the newsstands.
Staff at PC World will not be impacted by the digital only move according to publisher IDG. Bob Carrigan, CEO of IDG Communications, said in a prepared statement that "PCWorld colleagues in the U.S. will now focus on innovative digital-first editions featuring interactive multimedia presented in high resolution."
Do any readers subscribe to printed computer or technology magazines?
The first edition of PC World, click to enlarge
