Gratification Niches of Monthly Print Magazines and the World Wide Web Among a Group of Special-Interest Magazine Subscribers

Abstract

Through the framework of niche theory, this study compared the gratification niches of monthly print magazines and the World Wide Web through a survey administered to 371 subscribers of a special-interest magazine. The findings suggest that the Web offers a wider array of gratifications than magazines, and delivers them in a superior fashion. The Web excels among cognitive, task-oriented uses; while magazines hold their ground for more affective, self-oriented uses.