SF Magazines: Financial Models
Filed Under: SF Business, Speculative Fiction, Top Post
For my own benefit as much as anything else, I’d like to run through the models that I am aware of that can be used to financially support a magazine–whether it is a print or an electronic magazine. Here’s what I got. If I miss any, please let me know and I will continue to update this. These are not mutually exclusive. Many magazines use a combination of these.
Subscription/Pay Model
Giving the content in return for a subscription fee or a cover price. Generally selling a bundle of stories/content. Example: traditional print magazines.
Advertising Model
Selling access to your readers to advertisers, and placing their advertising among your content. Example: most traditional print magazines sell advertising as well.
Patron Model
Supported by a single person or small private group of people from private funds. Example: The Fortean Bureau was primarily our private money. (If you ever donated? You are my hero).
Donation/Fund Drive model
The NPR model, as I’ve heard it referred to. Regular requests for funds from readers, with no set amount. Example: Strange Horizons is the most successful example of this. I believe Escape Pod does this as well, but I haven’t seen any fund drives from them.
Full Site Sponsorship
A single corporate entity, for whatever reason, subsidizes the magazine. Example: SCIFICTION. I seem to think Chizine as well?
Premium Content
Special access to special content. A kind of subscription model. I’m not sure about this one, what do you guys think? Is it different enough? Example: Salon used to do this, but I am not sure if they do anymore.These models are irrelevant as to whether a magazine is nonprofit, hobby, or for-profit. Many of these models are considered failures. Which ones do you think work or don’t? Perhaps the best solution for a sustainable magazine (online or off) would be a combination of 3 or more?
I am not sure that the subscription model is working very well anymore. As Chance pointed out in the comments of the Triad post yesterday, comparing Escape Pod to the Triad isn’t a good comparison because Escape Pod doesn’t have a cost to subscribe. I argued that just because the one has a different model for support than the other doesn’t mean that they can’t be compared as “magazines” with readerships.
Steve, I know you sometimes read this– could you tell me or provide me a link to where you might talk more about the funding model behind Escape Pod? Chance argues that Escape Pod is your hobby, as another reason that the subscriber numbers can’t be compared. I’d like to know more about how Escape Pod affords to function, if you’re comfortable talking about it.
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