Details and GQ Get Digital Makeovers as Print Ad Sales Shrink
As Barnes & Noble launches its Nook e-reader today, we are reminded of how the popular aversion to paper and, of course, the recession have taken a tighter and tighter death-grip on the print industry. After the closure of Condé Nast Portfolio and more recently, Gourmet, the Condé Nast magazine empire seems to be making a bigger leap into the digital arena in an effort to stay competitive. With dwindling print ad sales and plummeting subscriptions, nearly every Condé Nast publication has taken a hit. Since last year, men's fashion glossy 'Details' is down $14.4 million in ad sales, a 28.2-percent decrease, while 'GQ' is down $37.6 million, or 27-percent.But now, both GQ and Details have dedicated sites away from the Men.Style.com umbrella (which now just redirects to GQ's homepage). And instead of just plugging subscriptions for the print versions (although there's still plenty of that), those sites feature daily content, taking a cue from print-meets-digital publications like New York Magazine.
In a move sure to simultaneously thrill pubescent boys and infuriate female gamers (and moms), subscribers to the canceled magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) have instead begun receiving issues of a publication known for its photos of scantily clad women. 
Print publications are hemorrhaging money while online ad revenue has cooled off. In this new environment, where consumers expect content to be provided for free, news outlets are still struggling to find a working, profitable business model that satisfies customers. 
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