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The precise history of ezines is complicated and hotly debated, but the first ezine is believed to have been published in 1984. During the 1990s, ezine publishers began adapting their publications to the interactivity of the Internet instead of following a standard print format.
With an increase in the sophistication of spam filters and the popularity of blogs, ezines are becoming less popular among Internet users. However, those ezines that continue to adapt are still finding success providing newsletter-type publications that offer teasers of online magazine content or cater to niche markets. -
The types of ezines available are virtually limitless, but most ezines come in one of three basic formats: newsletters, which offer extensive content; online versions of standard print magazines; and shorter, announcement-style ezines that focus on directing the recipient to content on a website or blog.
Ezines cover an enormous range of topics, from sports and news to television spoilers and celebrity gossip. Some ezines focus exclusively on providing coupons or discounts to those on the mailing list, while others showcase the work of the ezine subscribers. - Ezines are generally opt-in publications, which means recipients must subscribe in order to receive the mailing. This makes the audience for ezines highly targeted, which is a gold mine for advertisers. Ezines are also an excellent way for Internet users to stay current on information they are interested in and to receive promotional offers that may not be available elsewhere. Ezine publishers benefit by reaching a larger audience than they would normally have access to, and by building their magazine or blog subscriber base. Web users who visit a website to follow up on content included in an ezine may boost ad revenue for the website owner. Additionally, ezines are paperless and cause no harm to the environment.
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Subscribers are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain for many ezine publishers. Many ezines trigger spam filters, even when placed on approved lists. Many web-based email providers, such as Yahoo and Hotmail, encourage users to flag emails that are potentially spam. When an undetermined threshold is hit, the senders of these emails are added to a "known spam" list, even if the sender is legitimate. Ezine subscribers who have grown tired of their subscriptions often flag the publications instead of following the opt-out directions contained in the email. This means interested subscribers must continually update their personal approved email lists to continue receiving the ezine.
The limited attention span of the average web user, combined with a low frustration level and limited understanding of spam, means a great number of ezines will not be recovered or read. If ezines are to survive in the future, this issue will need to be resolved. -
Some ezine publications are used primarily for advertising and contain very little useful content. Often, this type of ezine is an opt-out subscription, meaning web users must intentionally check a box to choose not the receive the mailing. Many web users are not even aware they are agreeing to a subscription when visiting a website with an opt-out subscription, and then find themselves receiving a barrage of publications for subjects they have no interest in.
Moreover, many of these publications have difficult-to-understand methods for unsubscribing, and some may even lure web users to enter their email address on a website as part of the unsubscribe process. These email addresses are then stored, sold to third parties and used for additional spamming purposes. Web users must be careful to subscribe only to ezines offered by legitimate websites and should never click on a link in any email unless they are 100 percent positive the email is from a legitimate site.
