Subscription-based magazines and other printed media have been some of the most eager adopters of NFTs and blockchain technologies. Being that magazine covers have been used as a platform for some of the world’s most famous photographs such as the Afghan Girl, it makes sense that they would turn to NFTs as a new way to bridge their cover arts onto the blockchain. 

TimePieces by Time Magazine

Time Magazine is one of the most recognizable magazine brands worldwide. They have been in publication for nearly a century, providing in-depth coverage of major historical events and figures throughout the 20th century. Their cover stories also included the infamous deep web marketplace Silk Road and its use of bitcoin in 2013. 

Following the NFT boom in 2021, Time magazine created TimePieces which is a series of cover art collections which also includes a full rendering of an issue featuring Vitaliek Buterin as their cover story.  

Lately, they’ve released a new cover art collection using artwork from Micah Johnson who designed the AkuDreams artwork. Utilities, however, are scarce with holders only receiving a chance at an airdrop of additional cover art sketches from Micah Johnson. 

You can read more about the AkuDreams collection here.

Rolling Stone 

Rolling Stone magazine has been in close partnership with Yuga Labs following the Bored Ape Yacht Club’s rise in popularity. They have released numerous cover stories on the topic and have also worked in collaboration to release their own cover artworks as NFTs. 

Neil Strauss, a popular writer associated with the publication, has also been a member of the web3 ecosystem as the author of the Bored and Dangerous novel which was made in collaboration with the Jenkins the Valet community. 

Sports Illustrated

Sports have been one of the most eager industries to dive into NFTs and cryptocurrency. Many of the world’s most popular athletes have begun doing advertisements and promotions for various web3 brands. 

Using the OneOf marketplace, Sport illustrated has begun producing its own sport collectibles as NFTs which include past cover art. They have also developed their own figurines as digital collectibles for exchange in the marketplace. 

You can read more about NFTs and sports here.

New York Times Original Blockchain

Most interestingly of all, one of the earliest adoptions of blockchain technology actually came over a decade before bitcoin was ever conceived and had no concept of currency. 

The New York Times began publishing a hashed time stamp in the ad section of their newspapers in 1995 as a way to establish authenticity at the dawn of the internet era. 

This early implementation of a blockchain, designed by Stuart Haber and Scott Stornetta, was a direct influence on Satoshi during the development of the bitcoin network where they are cited 3 separate times on the bitcoin whitepaper. 

New revenue for industries hit hard by the internet

So why are so many publication companies interested in blockchain technology? Well, one speculation is that magazines need to find new, alternate routes of revenue for a business model which has been hampered by the internet. 

By incorporating NFTs and blockchains, many of these companies are finding unique ways of delivering content to users in a community-based economy. While web1 and web2 may have created unexpected challenges for the journalism industry, web3 appears to be providing a solution.