Just Another Game

Literally. Well, for Esquire at least.

The September* issue of will have an e-ink cover. 100,000 of the total 720,000 print run will be assembled by hand, with parts criss-crossing the globe before ending up newsstands, jumping out at your eyes with shifting images.

Link to full news item here.

While obviously another way to go when it comes to standing out on the newsstand, we just have to wonder if such a move is just a way for the print industry to desperately cope with the fast changing times. As the business model for magazines in the US is more geared towards subscription than newsstand sales, there is really no need for publishing companies to stick their necks out for the price of evolution.

Of course, locally, it’s an entirely different story.

Take the July issue of FHM Philippines, for example, which came arrived in the local industry’s first ever foil package. The thing you have to take note of is that the magazine has always been inside a foldcote cardboard enclosure for the past few years. Hence, there was a need to offer the reader something different. The move couldn’t have come at a better time as the issue also contained the annual 100 Sexiest Women in the World pullout supplement. Imagine how disappointed people would feel if it had only come with a normal issue?

In Esquire’s case, people may see this as just a gutsy move to stay afloat and top of mind among advertisers as the dollars move to online. While probably a production nightmare, you just have to understand — Esquire has been in existence for more almost 75 years now. Nothing left to prove, and everything they can do to pull in more readers.

Oh well, happy anniversary.