An inflight magazine (or in-flight magazine) is a free magazine distributed via the seats of an airplane by an airline company or in an airport lounge.
Many airline companies or a few key content creating companies produce in-flight magazines to provide details about their fleet, as well as articles about destinations or other interesting travel and tourism information.
In-flight publishing and media is a niche in the magazine industry. Airline titles have controlled distribution costs, and readership figures come from existing passenger traffic. Most airlines use external publishers to produce their magazines,[1] and Ink is currently[when?] the world's leading company in this sector.[citation needed]
In a recent Harris Poll, 94% of business passengers read the in-flight magazines, with a 30 minute average reading time per flight, according to a 2009 Arbitron study.[1] Despite the challenges facing the publishing industry, this is a healthy sector. On a large scale, in-flight magazines have suffered less than traditional magazines overall.[1]
While the quality of in-flight magazines varies from carrier to carrier, their upscale, valuable and captive readership appeals to advertisers across all sectors, including luxury-goods makers, car manufacturers, beauty and fashion brands as well as global destinations.[1]
The first in-flight magazine was that of Pan American World Airways, whereas the longest running in-flight magazine is KLM's Holland Herald,[2] first published in January 1966.[3] There are currently over 150 in-flight magazine titles.[4]
Moreover, since the birth of digital technology, some key airlines are now offering the chance for the magazines to be read digitally via tablet computer applications, or over the internet.[5]
Among specialized publishers are:
Quite similar to in-flight magazines, some railroad companies offer a comparable product aboard their long distance trains, e.g. Deutsche Bahn's mobil or Indian Railways' Rail Bandhu magazine.[41] This magazine is also distributed via the seats of the passenger cars.
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