Blender Magazine to shut down

[Clashed]

http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=135539

Blender to shut down ; April 09 issue is the last one

... hopefully we'll get something good with our 5-6 years remaining subscriptions

[coolsun]

wow most of my recent free subscriptions are going to waste. kinda wished it was that garbage vibe magazine instead.

[Pearls]

This should not come as a surprise to anyone. Many people here knew last year it was only a matter of time before they shut down.

I wonder what magazine we're going to get now.

The last issue is the one with Kelly Clarkson on the cover, which probably all of us has got already.

[shopgurl101]

Blender use to be one of my favorite mags about 5 years ago, but now has become horrible. It was blunt, kept it real, and was hilarious, unlike the other politically correct boring mags that were there. And it featured articles of artists that were not always in the top 40, but always interesting . Now it's so thin, and boring that I don't even bother.

[Glittery]

I just got my first issue of that a couple of weeks ago on a free sub. Figures they close down now. lol

Wonder if I'll get something good as a substitution.

[Nuala'sMom]

This should not come as a surprise to anyone. Many people here knew last year it was only a matter of time before they shut down.

I wonder what magazine we're going to get now.

The last issue is the one with Kelly Clarkson on the cover, which probably all of us has got already.

Chances are you'll get MAXIM or nothing. Blender and Maxim both have a policy of not allowing a person to stack more than 5 years onto a subscription through the sponsored subscription offers. If you already have Maxim, they will likely only add up to the 5 year limit. if you have five years already, you will get one of their infamous "Sorry chump, no more issues for you" letters that we have all grown so fond of (NOT) aat slick deals!

Here's the reason they shut down:
Ad pages at Blender also plunged 31% last year and another 57% from January through April, according to the Publishers Information Bureau and Media Industry Newsletter. Monthlies as a whole, by comparison, sank 12% last year and another 22% through April. Ad pages at Maxim fell 11% in 2008 and 37% from January through April.

MAXIM may not have long to live either at this rate.




.

[limpstar]

Blender use to be one of my favorite mags about 5 years ago, but now has become horrible. It was blunt, kept it real, and was hilarious, unlike the other politically correct boring mags that were there. And it featured articles of artists that were not always in the top 40, but always interesting . Now it's so thin, and boring that I don't even bother.

:iagree: Blender was my very favorite mag. Now, it's crap. I have many years of Maxim (which should cease too!) left so I doubt I will get anything. Blah.

[daniel9]

awww that suxxxxx i liked blender and i already have the april issue.

[peanutty]

5 or 6 years for you? mine was supposed to end 2025 :) and part of that is because when Stuff mag quit, they gave me the option of applying the remainder of my renewals to Blender.

oh well. all these mags shutting down is the reason why i'm now reluctant to renew subs that i actually pay for, like Time and Newsweek.

[shinynblue]

Another one bites the dust, it was pathetic as the years went by. I really won't miss my free sub.

[GeminiiGirl]

Chances are you'll get MAXIM or nothing. Blender and Maxim both have a policy of not allowing a person to stack more than 5 years onto a subscription through the sponsored subscription offers. If you already have Maxim, they will likely only add up to the 5 year limit. if you have five years already, you will get one of their infamous "Sorry chump, no more issues for you" letters that we have all grown so fond of (NOT) aat slick deals!

Here's the reason they shut down:

MAXIM may not have long to live either at this rate.
.


:dontknow: weird. i stacked way more than 5 years on my blender sub a couple years back. it expires 2015 now.

[Bob Livewell]

Another one bites the dust, it was pathetic as the years went by. I really won't miss my free sub.

like the singer cathy dennis says................ "that's the way of the world" .... seems as if the new age media is taking over....... even the 2 local major philly papers may merge or close..... closure would be best...... as nobodyyyyyyyyy reads them anymore...... sad but true.......

[SlickDealio]

When they stopped publishing Stuff they gave me Blender as an alternative.

When they stopped publishing FHM I didn't get jack.

I miss both Stuff and FHM.

[u2fan01]

Why are all the good ones going away?! This sucks...they better give us a refund for our leftover sub...or something equally good.

[Corey_LA]

I really liked blender. :(

[kvilledrummer]

Another one bites the dust, it was pathetic as the years went by. I really won't miss my free sub.

Agreed. After my first few issues I didn't even want it clogging up my mailbox for free. Can't say I'm surprised its dying.....

[Nuala'sMom]

:dontknow: weird. i stacked way more than 5 years on my blender sub a couple years back. it expires 2015 now.

Consider yourself lucky although I sincerely doubt you'll ever see all those issues. Maxim is on life support right now and hanging by a thread. My husband actually managed to rack one sub up through 2025! We laugh every time we see the label.

This just goes to show you that a publisher cannot sustain artifical growth year after year. They plumped up their circulation numbers via massive giveaways of sponsored subscriptions (what we SDers call "free subs" but which aren't actually free, a sponsor pays a cut rate for the subs). Fully 2/3rds of their circulation was achieved this way and like a dying red giant star that has expanded beyond it's ability to hold together its mass through gravity, the outer skin of their ad-base just blew away on the solar winds of the bad economy.

Oooh, aren't I the queen of the meaty metaphor tonite! :lmao:

Back to the issue at hand: The 5 year limit: it was enforced haphazardly at first and then pretty much across the board within the past year. It takes a while for the "Sorry chump" letters to generate. We'll likely get them about 5 or 6 months from now.



I urge those wondering how sponsored subscriptions work to click on the link in my signature to the Mythbusting Freebizmags thread. That thread also has a link to the other Mythbusting thread which deals with RewardsGold formerly known as MagCentral.





.

[s0nginmyheart]

So... does this mean my Kelly Clarkson issue will be a collector's item? LOL

[ersatz]

I guess constantly giving all these free subs away kills the mag. :) It's always interesting to see the decline of magazines. Wouldn't be surprised to see computer shopper go next as that mag has dwindled steadily.

[spacetime12467]

Wonder what the sub will be as I actually had a paid sub to this mag

[steller]

When they stopped publishing Stuff they gave me Blender as an alternative.

When they stopped publishing FHM I didn't get jack.

I miss both Stuff and FHM.

:iagree: :weeping:

[C64amiga500yey]

I guess constantly giving all these free subs away kills the mag. :) It's always interesting to see the decline of magazines. Wouldn't be surprised to see computer shopper go next as that mag has dwindled steadily.

Computer shopper is already dead my friend. Died earlier this month. Only Maximum PC, PC Gamer and PC World really left now. PC Gamer is on my radar. I don't want it to be but I have a feeling considering what they just did to it. (Removing opinion pages, editor change)

There is a thread for Computer Shopper's demise right here in this forum.

As for Maxim, I'm thinking that one is next. The issue I just got (Malin Akerman) seems much smaller then usual.

[skyblacker]

I had the opportunity to renew this free sub and I didn't. Even for free, it wasn't worth filling out another survey at Rewards Gold. That's pretty sad when you think about it.

[Nuala'sMom]

I guess constantly giving all these free subs away kills the mag. :) It's always interesting to see the decline of magazines. Wouldn't be surprised to see computer shopper go next as that mag has dwindled steadily.

One of the reasons I am constantly reminding people to read the Mythbusting threads is because those threads explain the economic forces behind the decisions to use sponsored subscriptions as a means of artificially plumping up circulation.

The magazines did not fail because they gave away sponsored subs , which were not free but discounted subs paid for by sponsors and then give to YOU for free. They failed because they had a piss poor business plan that promised advertisers continued growth which they could only sustain through the giving away of sponsored subs. Well, that and the collapse of the economy.

Long time slick dealers have been predicting Blender's demise since 2004. We used to have a magazine dead pool going but it got boring after a while when everything we picked went under quickly. The only one that didn't expire on cue was GIANT. RADAR managed to come back from the dead as a print magazine twice and it may do it a third time if the publisher has his way.

There is nothing inherently wrong with using sponsored subscriptions to give a shot in the arm to your circulation or to introduce a new title or a newly redesigned title. the trick is in converting those new readers to fully paid subscribers. Hallmark did a good job of that but sadly, the economy collapse bit them in the butt big time. I loved that title and actually paid for it.

So, all I can say is, if Blender's failure makes you go "Hmmmmm", check out the Mythbusting thread. There's good info there and it ain't all by me.


FYI - it seems VIBE might be the next to go. See the recently ceased magazines thread for more detials. i posted a lot of stuff there yesterday.



.

.

[brooklyngal]

NOOOOOOOOOOOO!! :(

Although I'm not surprised by this--the mag has been thin for months--I'm still saddened by this news. This is my favorite music magazine!

:(

[Piquebu]

This really upset me. First RADAR and now this (even though RADAR can still be found online).

Blender always reminded me of a snarkier version of Rolling Stone (even though Blender seemed to change their format in the past two years).

I will miss it.

[summeranne]

I'm not surprised - I figured it'd be coming soon when the issue size got cut in half a couple of months ago.

[ckwilson08]

Didn't care for Blender so much. I would be a little upset if Vibe went though but I guess that's cause I'm really into rap music. Their T.I. article was written really good :) Sorry for the OT

I def. didn't like Blender though and I only got two issues.

[RareWS6]

sad, but i didn't really care for this mag.. wonder what we'll get instead...

[Nuala'sMom]

Didn't care for Blender so much. I would be a little upset if Vibe went though but I guess that's cause I'm really into rap music. Their T.I. article was written really good :) Sorry for the OT

I def. didn't like Blender though and I only got two issues.

I'm with you on the VIBE comment. They sometimes hit some real home runs with their features. I would be very sad to see that one go. Also in trouble are JET and Ebony. JET's problems sadden me the most because it's such a historic magazine. It's such a positive voice for the African-American Community.


My husband is sad about Blender becuase he used to get a chuckle out of their sense of humor. That always made me wonder why I married him, honestly.:lol: Oh well.


.

[klynb]

I got the April (Malin Ackerman) issue of Maxim this month and I never subscribed to it. I think they've already moved Blender subscribers over.

[skyblacker]

I got the April (Malin Ackerman) issue of Maxim this month and I never subscribed to it. I think they've already moved Blender subscribers over.

Not surprising. Now that Blender's gone, Maxim is the only magazine left in Alpha Group's portfolio, so it's the only magazine we could get switched to.

My Blender subscription was set to expire in June and I also subscribe to Maxim. I wonder if I'll get double issues of Maxim for the next couple months.

[KinomiyaMichiru]

This is kinda sad.It was one of the few magazines I actually enjoyed looking at each month.

[mattzane227]

Yeah I liked it a lot better than Spin.

[teqrecon]

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/news/895957/Dennis-close-UK-edition-Maxim-magazine/

[UltimoLeo]

This was one the the mags I signed up for and never really read. Sounds like it was a pretty decent one though :(

[Seductive_Playa]

I had no idea that FHM and Stuff were gone. That makes me sad even though I haven't read any of them for 5 years or more.

[ckit]

It creeps me out when I hear about so many magazines folding...

[skyblacker]

It creeps me out when I hear about so many magazines folding...

I think the amount seems larger to us at SlickDeals because many faltering magazines attempt to boost circulation with free subscriptions before they go under.

The fact is, even in good economic times, 75% of magazines don't make it to five years. Dozens of consumer magazines you've never heard of rise and fall each year. And in that context, Blender's print run of nine years is pretty good.

[Nuala'sMom]

Some slightly interesting news - I have a few Maxim subs that go until practically the next century and since Alpha Media Group (formerly Dennis Publications) has an existing policy that they will not roll over any subscription obligations from folded mags to their remaining mags beyond 5 years obligation, I was wondering what in heck to do with my Blender subs that go for years and years. So I called up their friendly toll-free customer service center and got a helpful dude who allowed me to transfer my entire BLENDER subscription to my neighbor's grandson who is doing a couple of years in the State Pen for drug possession. (they got him for intent to sell cuz he was carrying an ounce of MJ and it wasn't his first arrest)

I was surprised they let me do that because often the customer service reps are nasty about transferring a sponsored sub with a lot of years but he was super nice. I couldn't do it online because it appears they assigned a new account # to my sub when they switched it over to MAXIM. Now Mr. Helpful Dude said he had not been told for sure that MAXIM was the mag that was gonna replace BLENDER but he did know that whastever we will get will be an Alpha Media publication. Seeing as the only magazine Alpha Media still publishes is MAXIM, I'd say it's a safe bet we'll all get Maxim.

If any of you want to switch you BLENDER sub over to somebody else to avoid losing those years to the standing policy of not rolling over more than 5 years.. call them at:

toll-free at 1-800-289-0639.

I know that's Field & Stream's number but the same place handles MAXIM & Blender subs - just ask them The MAXIM link doiesn't give a phone number.

[CallistaSkye]

I had a sub. to this a while back, but I never really could get into the magazine personally. It just was sort of boring. But it always is a bummer when magazines fold, because there are so many people that like to read certain ones.
I wonder if part of them folding is that people just don't have the money to spend on a subscription right now.

[vodreaux]

My Maxim goes beyond 2020!
ISS#04 2023

[blackbrutha]

The magazine sucked anyways and , I had like 3 or so years left but I dont give a damn because it was free. Newspapers are dead, and Magazines are dying a quick death.

[onlycash]

I have two subs one ends in 2029 the other in 2021