In 1967 the New York born Jann Wenner scraped together $7500 in borrowed money to start the San Francisco based magazine Rolling Stone. The bi-weekly rag initially came into existence reporting on the hippy counterculture of the late sixties. It soon became not only an observer of the music and culture, but more a springboard for the ideas of a generation. In the seventies Rolling Stone had matured, now voicing many political and groundbreaking social stories. Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas first appeared on the pages of the Rolling Stone during this decade.
Rolling Stone Magazine continued to grow readership through the years (although has suffered slight decline in more recent times) to become one of the worlds most adored and simultaneously criticized publications.
Enter the digital age, of course Rolling Stone have had a website for some time now. The website has been a live support mechanism for the newsstand print version and has touched on bits and pieces of current issue, as well as politics and counterculture news items. That is until a few days back.
On the 20th of April, Rolling Stone magazine online released it’s “All access” area. This is a members subscription area ( USD$3.95 a month or USD$2.50 a month for one year) but what it gives you is pretty damn good ! Access to the complete Rolling Stone digital archive. That’s over 1000 issues, all articles, including cover art. This archive has previously not been available in full on the web space. If you are genuinely into your music, I consider this a pretty sweet deal.
Rolling Stone have recognized with heavy competition off and online, the best way to grow loyalty is to give – giving (even for a price) takes back readership/viewership control. With the release of hardware like the iPad, this form of content now seems a very valid option for flicking through the last forty or so years of your favorite mag.
Related posts:
