Those magazines were also ad supported and those companies sold our addresses so that other companies could solicit us. They were also really cheap, probably cheaper than the cost of printing and mailing.
If the ad model is broken, I have no problem paying for content when that day comes. These companies are also up against twitter and free, ad supported, youtube content.
My biggest problem with all these new paywall initiatives are the public radio like appeals. Sob story pitches like “we deserve to get paid” or “support our journalism”, blah, blah, blah are pure BS.
Cyclingtips or Velonews isn’t a bunch of cycling geeks sitting around trying to save a sinking ship of a business. They are owned by Outdoor Inc, a media giant backed by venture capital money. They seem to have a strategy of buying up everything and then throwing up paywalls. Maybe it will work for them?
In the future I may decide to pay for Cyclingtips but I’ll know full well that I’m sending my money to a corporation not making a contribution so that James Huang can keep his job.