Just idling away my morning and happened to notice the cover of current Autosport shows a price of £10.99. A price increase was mentioned in a previous issue but no figures were mentioned. As a yearly subscriber, I couldn’t recall the cover price prior to the increase to £10.99
I now read online that owners Motorsport.net are pursuing a “digital first” business model but in their press release they simply state the price of Autosport has gone up to £10.99 a week. But they do not state the price of the digital online equivalent. Neither have they given me the option of switching to completely digital, although I can access it thanks to my print subscription.
The mag has been pretty poor for a while now with full race results online and features created from their archives. It certainly isn’t worth £10.99 a month and certainly not £10.99 a week.
I’m bloody outraged at the situation.
Anyone else?
£10.99 a WEEK 
This is a pretty direct marketing plan to shift people onto the digital version, surely?
Found a recent issue with the usual editorial apology for increased pricing although it did not mention figures.
As I read on , for the first time, It directed me to offers for digital only use. But what pisses me off, as a longtime subscriber, is that they did not contact me directly about increasing my direct debit or offer me the cheaper digital option.
Just hoped I wouldn’t notice. Cynical ploy.
It’s part of a big change by Motorsport Network, who own Autosport along with Motorsport News, F1 Racing, etc. They bought the various titles from Haymarket in 2016 and - by all accounts - they have been angling to go digital-only for some time.
Frankly I haven’t read Autosport for years; since they went all “best ever”, “fever” and dropped most of the club racing reporting in favour of greater (but often shallower) F1 coverage I stopped subscribing. Indeed since the price hike there’s been a ‘Ye Olde Autosport’ Twitter feed that has been excellent fun and a great reminder of how the magazine was…
I emailed Autosport and have now spoken to someone who has clarified matters. My existing subscription continues at the old price but when it’s up for renewal the new charges will apply. I will kick print into touch and go digital for a much more reasonable annual charge.
I think it’s been very badly handled by the Autosport heirachy, especially as tlracer says , their coverage is no longer as comprehensive as it used to be.
Thanks, folks for your interest . . . it’s kept me busy most of the morning and, according to Mrs Thommo, I’ve been having a “right old rant”
It’s an age thing, I think.
Bloody hell £10.99 a week !!
As Gervais in Extras would say ‘There having a laugh’
I’ve calmed down now and will go digital but the way they have handled (mishandled) it is pretty poor.
Looks like its £40 a year for access to their website, if you don’t want to be limited to a couple of articles a month, then another £40 for the digital magazine. Is there enough content in the mag that isn’t on the website to warrant the extra?
I stopped my paper subscription a while ago, but keep toying with the idea of paying for broader access to the website.
Guess what? Autosport have done a U-turn. In an announcement tucked on the end of a website story about Elfyn Evans moving to Toyota, and appearing nowhere else on the site, they say “this week and for the foreseeable future” the price of the print mag will returning to £3.99.
That’s the way to run a business, eh?
Just in time for the content to dry up for the winter break.
Would have been disastrous to roll out that price rise now. They’ll wait till F1 2020 is about to kick off.