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Pathfinder59
regular
Reg'd: Sat
Posts: 37
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I am becoming increasingly dismayed at the amount of advertising published in Web User. While we all know the amount of revenue generated by advertising is huge it becomes frustrating for the reader to have so much of it forced upon them.
In Issue 184 I have had to wade through eight pages of advertising to find relevant content. Full page adverts are bad enough, but to have a large block section of eight pages is unbearable. This is becoming more commonplace over recent issues.
If only the publishers could produce a supplement containing all of the advertising then the reader could 'bin' the whole section and not be forced to trawl through page upon page of this commercial tripe.
Apart from that.....well done on a brilliant magazine!!!
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greysts
regular
Reg'd: Thu
Posts: 17117
Loc: Colchester
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Are you prepared to pay £5 an issue for your magazine? It may come as a surprise to you but adverts are a necessary part of magazine publishing these days. Do you really think an advertiser would agree to have all the adverts hidden away in a set of pages that the reader could conveniently ignore or throw away without reading?
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Do you know that we're all in line for succession to the throne? Really?
Well, if forty-eight million, two hundred thousand, seven hundred and one people died I'd be Queen.
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clairewoffenden
Editor
Reg'd: Tue
Posts: 551
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Hello,
I know advertising can be very irritating to many people, but I would like to reassure readers that despite there being an 8-page block of advertising in the centre of the current issue, there are actually more editorial pages than in the previous two issues.
You could also pull out the advertising section from the centre of the magazine and it won't interfere with the magazine contents.
We're glad to hear you enjoy Web User!
Claire
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muckster
regular
Reg'd: Wed
Posts: 52
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I too have become concerned about the amount of advertising in recent issues of Webuser. The reason I buy this magazine is that it stands out from the crowd-it contains the right balance of informative, practical and inspirational content for those interested in computers. If advertising is purposely so large and unwelcome that it is put in the middle so that it can be ignored or easily disposed of it is missing the point. This is not good for the advertiser or the reader.
Advertising should complement not overwhelm. I am sure a two-page advert would have got the same amount of interest. There are other computer magazines with far too much advertising. In some cases it is a chore to find the readable content from the hard sell. I would like to see “The UK’s best-selling internet magazine!” stay that way and not fall in to the trap of advertising overload.
Regards - Muckster
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DJ2
regular
Reg'd: Sat
Posts: 46
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>It may come as a surprise to you but adverts are a necessary part of magazine publishing these days.<
Yes they are but not to the point of actually hindering enjoyment of said magazine.
What you are actually saying is the reader is now second best to the advertiser in terms of generating revenue. If a magazine is good enough then it should generate enough profit from SALES and not have to rely HEAVILY on whacking big adverts.
And while we're on the subject; if a potential reader picks up an issue of WebUser (one that contains a phone-book sized advert in the centre) s/he will 'think' that the chunky magazine is great value for £1.95 (cor! look how much you get for your money) - only to find out that once the phone-book advert has been 'filed' where it belongs (in the trash) s/he's left with a pamphlet that doesn't' quite feel such a bargain.
What this really amounts to is the same old story of greed on the publishers side and a total lack of concern for the reader.
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TheFatControlleR
Forum Admin
Reg'd: Fri
Posts: 6379
Loc: Megatripolis
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Quote:
If a magazine is good enough then it should generate enough profit from SALES and not have to rely HEAVILY on whacking big adverts.
I would, respectfully, suggest you know little or nothing about the economics of running a title, or getting a magazine to the newsstand/letterbox. 
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 TFC
'Going to trial with a lawyer who considers your whole life-style a Crime in Progress is not a happy prospect.' - Hunter S Thompson (1937-2005)
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rob897
regular
Reg'd: Fri
Posts: 95
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Quote:
Do you really think an advertiser would agree to have all the adverts hidden away in a set of pages that the reader could conveniently ignore or throw away without reading?
there could be ads that you could still thow away but are on that type of paper thats designed to be pullen out
i to noticed more ads in web user but im not complianing (yet!) at £1.99 its a good magazine un like the xp offical magazine at £6.49! i used to get that then some one reccomedned me web user and yesterday i bought xp mag 1st time in 3 yrs and only started buying web user since last march the one with free internet tv was my first would like all of them though! :P
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DJ2
regular
Reg'd: Sat
Posts: 46
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You are correct FatController I don't know much about the 'economics of running a title' but I do know what puts folk off and I reckon that the complaints and assent here might give IPC a big clue as to what might happen to their readers should this continue.
I purchase WebUser as soon as it comes out and it certainly helps me with my use of the internet. But this huge increase in adverts is starting to grate and I'm certain that if it continues I will stop purchasing; in the same way as I have stopped purchasing Sunday newspapers because they are now (and I bet most would agree with me) one huge piece of junk mail.
Would be nice if they listened to their readers but as I've said before; readers are second best now. If IPC receives more revenue from advertsiers than it does from sales it is obvious who will suffer.
Still I suspect IPC will get the message when sales start to falter and fall.
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The_Wanderer
regular
Reg'd: Mon
Posts: 254
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In general the number of advertisements to editorial pages looks to be running about one advertisement page to every four editorial pages, which I would have thought was lighter on advertisements than many other publications.
Looking carefully at the Google issue (184) you'll notice that the page before the centre 8 pages of 1&1 advertisements is numbered 42 and the page after is numbered after is 43 . So we are still getting the same number of editorial pages as usual.
If the centre 8 pages is really irratating you it will affect nothing other then these pages if you pull them out - obviously one suspects that 1&1 would rather you read them first!  You are not losing out on any editorial pages.
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Snip
new user
Reg'd: Tue
Posts: 2
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Adverts are ok in the Mag. They can help with various projects. All Mags have ads, a fact of life. More ads the better for me. 
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Pathfinder59
regular
Reg'd: Sat
Posts: 37
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You obviously haven't read the issue in question. It is clear that the adverts in question (8 pages from the same company advertising one thing) serve no other purpose than to generate income for the publisher.
Adverts are free and if this is the thing that you want you do not have to pay for them.
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Pathfinder59
regular
Reg'd: Sat
Posts: 37
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Quote:
It may come as a surprise to you but adverts are a necessary part of magazine publishing these days. Do you really think an advertiser would agree to have all the adverts hidden away in a set of pages that the reader could conveniently ignore or throw away without reading?
Do I detect a hint of sarcasm in your comments?
The idea of forums is to be able to allow members to air their opinions. Whilst I am aware of your contribution to the forums and technical advice you have provided this type of reply is unwarranted.
Did I suggest that advertising was NOT a necessary part of publishing.......NO
Did I suggest that advertisers would want their material tucked away .......NO
I was merely voicing my opinion as I am entitled to (as are you)
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FifeFlyer
regular
Reg'd: Thu
Posts: 3582
Loc: Fife
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And , whether the mag has too many , or not enough ads , guess what.......the world is still revolving. 
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http://www.thelost.org.uk/
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ourstanley
regular
Reg'd: Sun
Posts: 7608
Loc: Yorkshire, England
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... and a month later on from your first post and there is another advertising folder in the centre of the latest issue. No change there then so it must be time to move on ! Just my humble opinion you understand.
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ESET Smart Security - Maxthon Browser - Calendar of Updates - Folding@Home - RSS Bandit - HostsMan - Malwarebytes Anti-Malware - Glary Utilities - Revo Uninstaller - Secunia PSI
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Mouse
Moderator
Reg'd: Thu
Posts: 6380
Loc: Psst....over here
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We've had views and opinions and more importantly the editors response on the matter, I think this thread is done!
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