22 Mar 2013

What happened to Wireless World?

When I was younger, and that was a LONG time ago back in the 1960s, Wireless World was an amazing monthly magazine: it was around 10mm thick and packed with articles and information. My old girlfriend's dad had a WW collection going back to the late 1940s and I used the excuse of looking through these to go to see her during summer holidays. Not that much reading took place on those visits!

My question was what happened to Wireless World? It was still around a few years ago in a rather sad state about one third as thick as the editions I recall in the 1960s and earlier. I presumed it has died a death as I'd not seen copies for some time in the shops.  A little more searching shows that Wireless World is now known as Electronics World and this April marks the 100th anniversary of its foundation as Wireless World back in 1913.  Can't say I've noticed copies in W.H.Smith.

6 comments:

John J said...

I seem to remember that at some point it became 'Electronics & Wireless World' - that was a good few years ago though.
JJ

Dick said...

I'm not familiar with this pub but the cover illustrated would make a nice larger poster to hang in the radio shack.

G1KQH said...

It ceased publication, like many others.

73 Steve

G1KQH

Anonymous said...

The biggest seller of Magazines is W.H SMITHS.
The will only Stock Magazines with a circulation of 100K.
Nitch Magazines can only survive by subscription.
Roger do you remember Practical Television that became Television that is now gone due to the small TV repair shops disappearing and the advent of digital TV. Technology Today was a good replacement for Television Magazine but only lasted a few Months because of low circulation. Wireless world merged with Electonics Today International, Prictical Electonics merged with Everday Electronics to become Electronics. Ham Radio Today was taken over by RSGB and ceased publication. Shortwave Magazine became part of Radio Active. Radio Constructor ceased publication.
Practical Wireless made a good choice to concentrate on Ham Radio and build up it's subscription and Book services. Does anyone Know if Elektor is still around?

Tony

Back-Issues said...

Back issues of the magazine are available at the aptly named wirelessworldbackissues.co.uk

I bought a few copies and the owner told me that the full archive of issues is slowly going live over the coming weeks.

Owen said...

Wireless World (Renamed to Electronics & Wireless World in 1985, then just to Electronics World in 2004) is still going - albeit it in a rather thin (mainly advertising / New products features from companies) form. But was withdrawn for sale in shops due to low circulation a few years ago so only available by subscription (which I still receive) from the publishers (SJP Business Media)
- See www.electronicsworld.co.uk - or other online magazine subscription companies.

Not having it visible in shops can't help with circulation.
When the publishers of Television magazine (was at one point the same publisher (Reed?) as Electronics World, before these were sold-off to others) decided to discontinue it in 2007, due to low-circulation, someone else relaunched it as a subscription-only version (I think the previous one had also stopped appearing in shops). But that was very short-lived, due to poor sales (probably because no-one knew it existed - I never found out about the cease of either, until a while afterwards, despite having a subscription to the original one)