Build your own CD player for under $20

[Archangel]

It's a forced situation for them - their readership is considerably now very limited. Most of them are flogging a dead horse to a dead market. Expect the cover price to escalate even further before they eventually become defunct.

I think magazines become defunct by presenting useless projects, I see the premier remaining American Electronics magazines rehashing the same useless projects that killed off the thier predecessors, including salutes to Hugo Gernsback, april fools articles, etc ... It's as if they said "look how well it worked for them, lets model our magazine after them" so we get theramin construction how to's, and 12 issue series on using obsolete 7400 TTL logic, and foolish pictures of the writers wearing silly beanie caps, and they expect to compete with the internet with that drivel? I saw a robot arm in a magazine that looked like a 4th grader built it, out of straightened out tin can lids. Definately when my subscriptions expire, I will not renew them. That is why they are dying, that's why their advertisers are going elsewhere. The free market will always provide replacements, of which most will probably stagnate and follow the aformentioned examples.
EDIT: one more thought, perhaps too the failure to pay a fair price to independant authors is a large factor, 100 bucks a page just blows!

[T.Jackson]

EDIT: one more thought, perhaps too the failure to pay a fair price to independant authors is a large factor, 100 bucks a page just blows!

That's about the going rate. But you'll find that most contributors aren't in it for the money. The thought of 10,000+ people reading about your project, learning something from it, judging it too (love it / hate it / gee that's sparked an idea for something that I'm working on) - and perhaps even building it - is a bit of a buzz. Well it was for me at least. Kinda worn off now though (been there done that sort of scenario)

$100 may not seem like a lot, lets see how it looks in the eyes of the publisher ...

Estimated readership: 20,000
Staff: 5
Average staff salary: $50K PA
Printing costs p/ issue: $(2-4) *100+ pgs in full colour isn't cheap

-----------------
est cost p/ issue (big overheads)
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$ 50-70K

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Profit p/ issue
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Probably something like; ((issues sold * (cover price - %20)) + advertising revenue) - cost
20% would be for distributors (maybe even more)

*Wild guess: they might break even with couple of grand profit.
Not exactly your ultimate money making business here.

Edit: how about cost for rent? (phss - you can keep that business)