New Economist editor says internet "hurricane" on its way

The new editor of The Economist*, John Micklethwait, has said that the internet has yet to wreak its most powerful effects on the magazine industry.

In an interview published this morning in the Guardian's Media section he acknowledges online as one of the areas where change will need to be embraced by The Economist, one of the UK's most influential media exports:

Some of these changes will clearly be responses to the internet. "Online is a big challenge, a hurricane is moving in on our industry which is the internet. It has hit newspapers much more directly. It hasn't come through on to magazines as hard, but it is patently going to do so. Over time, more and more people are going to get the Economist only by online methods."

It will be interesting to see what changes Mr Micklethwait brings in. The Economist is great, but there's probably a lot more that they could do with their online edition and the very influential community of readers that make up its readership.

* NB: I notice you can get a free day-pass to The Economist today. If you don't have a subscription, today would be a good day to check it out.

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