Why Magazines Are So Costly in Australia?

usbc activist on 22/09/2017 - 15:03
Last edited 22/09/2017 - 19:29 by 1 other user

Just want to know why magazines are so costly in Australia?

They also arrive late. Magazines like National Geographic, Monocle, Wired, etc come a month late. Weekly magazines like Time, Economist, etc cost around $10 or more. Do Oz Bargainers read magazines? If so where do they get the magazines from? Back home in my country (India to be precise), I used to purchase a lot of magazines and enjoyed reading them in leisure and on weekends. Sometimes I miss that experience. I can only afford to buy only a magazine or two a month.

Though apps like magzter with monthly subscriptions came to my rescue. I still miss the experience of reading a real magazine in hands.

Entertainment

Comments

  • ozizoy on 22/09/2017 - 15:07
    +3

    Become a member of NSW state library. You can get online access to some magazines :)

    • mskeggs on 22/09/2017 - 15:31
      +3

      And your local library will have hundreds of magazines to read free on their comfy sofa.

      • plowry1977 on 25/09/2017 - 06:46
        +2

        They also sell them off a few months later for cheap price, ask where store is. Not upto date, but gives you that experience at home

        • usbc activist on 24/10/2017 - 10:33

          Is it the library that sell them off or the newsagents? I always wanted to ask the newsagents but was afraid to ask if they will get offended.

  • Looking4Bargians on 22/09/2017 - 15:09
    +1

    Welcome to Oztralia.

  • Baghern on 22/09/2017 - 15:11
    +1

    small population

    • Nugs on 22/09/2017 - 15:31
      +2

      smaller buyership

      • tryagain on 22/09/2017 - 16:04
        +1

        plus higher rent and staffing costs

  • Diji1 on 22/09/2017 - 15:45
    +2

    Pay money to look at ads.

  • Cheeper on 22/09/2017 - 15:47
    +1

    Magazines and books are almost extinct animals… Thanks to the digital age.
    Why we still pay to have libraries heaven knows.

    • Axelstrife on 22/09/2017 - 16:54
      +10

      Books are an exception it's still better to hold an actual book instead of a tablet or something.

      • [Deactivated] on 22/09/2017 - 17:13

        Why?

        You can't browse porn on a book….

        • Axelstrife on 22/09/2017 - 17:21

          Huh what?

        • [Deactivated] on 22/09/2017 - 17:26
          -2

          @Axelstrife:

          You like holding a book…

          Everything that can be done on a book can be done on a tablet…. I can also browse porn on a tablet…

        • Axelstrife on 22/09/2017 - 17:48

          @eggmaster: Reading a book is better than reading the same book on a tablet screen.

        • [Deactivated] on 22/09/2017 - 17:48

          @Axelstrife:

          Why? There is no actual reasoning behind that argument past personal preference.

        • Axelstrife on 22/09/2017 - 17:54
          +2

          @eggmaster: No low battery with am real book.

        • BlazinPast on 22/09/2017 - 18:08

          @Axelstrife: E-readers have plenty of advantages. Battery lasts for dozens of hours. Can carry multiple books at once. Saves space in your house. Easier to carry. Much lighter. Cheaper to buy books. Can find books that library/book shops don't have. Can quickly check for definitions or highlight certain sections for later reading. Not contributing to the cutting down of trees.

          Still boils down to personal preference if you enjoy the novelty of reading from a physical book, but practically, e-readers win on almost all accounts. Only thing that annoys me is the screen can be too small sometimes.

        • OzNewB on 23/09/2017 - 09:19
          +1

          @BlazinPast: All valid points in favour of an ebook reader. Tried it on iPad but ebook readers are way better for longer durations. On the other hand if I had a choice I'll any day pick up an actual paper one. I think we get a sense of satisfaction using/having things that we grew up with, which anyone who has always used a digital book won't. Maybe it's the smell, or the satisfaction of sharing (a friend/family member borrows it if they like, put it at the workplace cafeteria once you're done for other to read etc.), or even swatting a fly! Some things you can't do with a device.

          I'm on the same boat as OP, had to cut down a lot! Time regularly comes up with subscription offers which are quite affordable (mine is at over 75% discount).

        • usbc activist on 23/09/2017 - 13:46

          @OzNewB: May I know how do I access this subcription offer from time. I see that they switch to full priced subscriptions after the initial offer period.

        • OzNewB on 24/09/2017 - 08:52

          @genuinedude: I just wait for them to send me a new discounted subscription offer once I cancel the current one after a year. They always do, you just miss a few weeks in between unfortunately.

      • PVA on 23/09/2017 - 10:12

        yes, exactly.

    • JIMB0 on 22/09/2017 - 18:10
      +3

      I can flick through a real book much quicker than I could on a tablet.

      • andylch on 23/09/2017 - 17:35

        But you can't search a keyword through a real book, and you also can't do copy and paste.

  • thord on 22/09/2017 - 16:38
    +1

    Why is everything so expensive in Australia?

    We're suckers and we pay the asking price.

    • ninetyNineCents on 22/09/2017 - 17:53
      +4

      In a way its a good thing, because its part of what makes Australia the greatest country on earth to live in.

      THings could be cheaper like the US but then you would lose out on many other great benefits like medicare.

      Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, and given you only live once, im happy if i pay more here and there, because i hit the jackpot living in Australia.

      • BlazinPast on 22/09/2017 - 18:17
        +1

        But it's more money going to the corporations, not money in taxes. For products like iPhones, we can be paying hundreds more for the US equivalent. All that extra money we're paying is going straight to Apple, not Medicare.

        • ninetyNineCents on 22/09/2017 - 18:26

          Of course i know that these companies are making money on us, im not a f**king idiot.

          Im just saying this is part of Australia, you take the good and the bad.

        • BlazinPast on 22/09/2017 - 18:28

          @ninetyNineCents: Sorry, I misunderstood you the first time. I thought you were saying it can be seen as a good thing because more expensive items would lead to better medicare.

      • Cleremy on 22/09/2017 - 19:51
        -2

        If you think Medicare's great wait until you turn 30 and you get a letter in the mail saying to get private health insurance or else the govt will charge you 2% for every year you delay getting it.

        I haven't come across any horror stories from the pre-medicare era, I bet the system was much less broken then.

        • ninetyNineCents on 22/09/2017 - 19:53
          +2

          Medicare + any levy of a few percentage points is still better than what Americans have to pay.

          How would you like to pay thousands for staying a few days in hospital or tens or thousands for major surgery.

          Did i mention that most americans are lucky to get sick days or more than a week or two of holidays ? Did i mention that many americans often work for nothing extra hours on the weekends or at nights.

    • PVA on 23/09/2017 - 10:08
      -2

      everything is not expensive in Australia, just some things.

      Go to the US and get some insurance for yourself or your car or house. Buy a ticket to the grandfinal (AFL / Superbowl)

  • Cheap Charlie on 22/09/2017 - 16:42
    +3

    Ahh Magazines…
    I saw one once in a museum, next to a CD and a video tape.
    Can you believe they once had stores which specialised in selling paper with words and pictures printed on them to the masses.
    Or those stores where you would take your roll of 12/24/36 pictures to be developed.

    • username999 on 22/09/2017 - 17:37
      +2

      I don't believe you. There can't be such things. That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard in my whole 15 years of life.

    • PVA on 23/09/2017 - 10:06
      -1

      what a load of garbage.

  • Nutrino on 22/09/2017 - 19:02

    A thing of the past, news agents too.

  • Cleremy on 22/09/2017 - 19:55
    +1

    It was always a bit of a downer, growing up, seeing how little magazines cost outside Australia, in the USA especially. You could get a year's subscription with free delivery in the USA for the cost of a few Australian issues.

  • ladolcevita on 23/09/2017 - 08:04
    +1

    I beleive the magazines that arrive from europe to australia are shipped here as freight hence the longgg delay and not posted via air freight.

  • Goldcoasterlinda on 23/09/2017 - 09:58

    I don't buy print magazines because of the cost. I order and borrow print copies from the local library. I also have access to ZINIO online e-mags as a registered library user, lots of titles available not only Australian titles, for free. I also pre-order the next edition of each one and it drops into my email inbox. The Zinio mags are yours to keep so you can create your own library/archive of back copies. Excellent service.

    • PVA on 23/09/2017 - 10:06

      Zinio is not around any more, changed companies and has been called RBdigital for sometime now. No where near as good anymore. But they also have Flipster which is another type as well.
      (thats on the gold coast to, cos thats what I use)

  • PVA on 23/09/2017 - 10:03
    -1

    I reckon Mags are expensive everywhere (well maybe not India but all western countries)

    Your local library will have magazines to borrow, also electronic versions too (I find a real magazine nicer to read than an E one on a tablet still)

    • usbc activist on 23/09/2017 - 13:43

      I don't think this is correct. When I compare prices, Magazines are very cheap in US. Cheaper than even in India (which is surprising). Yearly subscriptions are also very cheap.

  • usbc activist on 23/09/2017 - 13:45

    Thank you all for the suggestions. I will register with my local library and see how their collection is.

  • jackspratt on 23/09/2017 - 15:26
    +1

    If the women's gossip rags keep paying out $4.5+ million dollars for defamation damages, it probably won't help to lower prices.

    • Ozpit on 23/09/2017 - 22:15
      -1

      But don't women love reading that shit. Why is that? And they'll keep paying whatever to keep reading it.

  • AlienC on 05/10/2017 - 20:56
    +1

    I love magazines they are good nuggets of topic centric information with no distractions unlike the internet and the quality and work put into them you can literally feel at your fingertips.

    Alas unless I am the library or waiting room of some kind like sperm bank or doctors office the price is a bit ridiculous especially when I can literally absorb the information for free 9/10 online.

    I used to love reading pc magazines and pc gamer magazine from the newsagent after school.. So many cool toys and demos and things you just can't get from an online webpage like a poster sheet of the top soul calibur fighting list moves and etc.

    And Nat geo mags are so beautiful.. truly amazing articles and pictures I miss the much simpler cheaper times..

    • usbc activist on 09/10/2017 - 10:34

      I recently subscribed to natgeo. Nat Geo allows to subscribe for an year for $30.

      • AlienC on 09/10/2017 - 16:07

        How thick are their magazines nowadays. Could you potentially read one over a week or only a few days.

        Apart from storage requirements if they are too thin it might not be worth the $2.50 a month for me unless of course you think they might have resale value?

  • FattyHope on 24/10/2017 - 09:52

    Go online, everything is online now

    • usbc activist on 24/10/2017 - 10:36

      Ah online. 99% of the times I feel that I have better knowledge than what the online news sites write. The magazines like newyorker, wired, national geogrpahic go really indepth when they pick a subject.

      • FattyHope on 24/10/2017 - 14:37

        Yeah same with me, if you know the right place at the right time you can get information easily

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