Dear IDMers,
It is with a mixture of sadness and excitement that I
am announcing that after six years, Grooves will no
longer be a print publication, but will become an
all-digital magazine effective with our next issue.
There are a number of reasons for this decision, but I
have determined this is the best way for Grooves to
continue forward.
First things first: I acknowledge and apologize for
the fact that a digital edition cannot completely
replace a printed copy, especially in terms of
portability. (Foldable e-paper isn't here yet.)
However, there will be certain advantages for readers,
subscribers, and advertisers with Grooves' new digital
format.
READERS
Grooves will be partnering with digital publishing
service Texterity (
http://www.texterity.com) to create
online versions of Grooves. Unlike some other digital
magazine solutions, Texterity does not require you to
download an application in order to read an issue--the
issue will work in any Internet browser window. In
addition, you're able to download an issue to store on
your hard drive for future reference.
As a way to show the technology to as many people as
possible, we will be making the next issue of Grooves
--due before the end of the year--available for FREE.
When the new issue is published, you'll be able to
click on a thumbnail image of the cover on
groovesmag.com, and the issue will appear.
Since reading on screen is different than on paper,
we'll be rolling out a bolder, brighter look in our
digital editions--and the whole issue will now be in
color. We used to jam as many record reviews as
possible into an issue, but that's not really optimal
in a digital edition. So we will be running most of
our music reviews on the Grooves Web site for free,
updating content frequently. We'll also roll out some
different ideas for review content in the magazine.
After this trial issue, you can subscribe to the
Grooves digital edition for $10 for four issues in
2006. Grooves never had significant distribution
outside of the United States and Canada, but now
anyone anywhere in the world can read the best
English-language coverage of experimental electronic
music.
SUBSCRIBERS
As a courtesy to those who have subscribed beyond our
current issue now on newsstands, your Grooves
subscription will be extended for an additional two
issues.
I know that due to the vagaries of mailing services
worldwide, many subscribers have seen our issues for
sale at stores before they received their copies. That
will no longer be an issue. Especially if you're
overseas, you won't have to wait weeks after an issue
has left the printer to read it. Delivery of a new
issue will now be instantaneous.
ADVERTISERS
Advertisers want proof of an ad's effectiveness, but
there's no good way to measure how many people look at
an ad page in a print magazine. But we CAN track how
many people look at your ad in the digital edition of
Grooves. Better yet, a hyperlink can be built into any
ad, letting readers click straight to your Web site.
Want some more advantages to advertising in the
digital Grooves instead of print? How about cheaper
rates, and full color ads? For example, a
quarter-page color ad in our free trial issue will
cost the same as a sixth-page black-and-white ad in
our last print issue.
How about new types of ads? We can now offer two-page
spreads--the equivalent of 11x17 inches--without any
content getting swallowed up by a gutter caused by a
magazine's perfect binding. For a couple hundred extra
dollars, you can offer an audio track or add Flash
animation to an ad. The audio track will appear as a
small overlay window that a user can click to hear--a
great try-before-you-buy feature.
If you're interested in advertising in our first
digital issue, please send me an e-mail at
sean@groovesmag.com.
Finally, I want to thank everyone who has supported
Grooves over the past several years. We hope that you
will continue to support us in our new endeavor, so we
can keep providing you the same coverage you've come
to look to us for. Please send me an e-mail at
sean@groovesmag.com to let me know your thoughts.
Thanks,
Sean Portnoy
Editor/Publisher--Grooves Magazine
groovesmag.com
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