The Atlantic: How it made money

I didn't read it that way. I read it as a change of strategy that incorporated, among other things, three things a lot of other smaller publishing companies are doing. 1) Keep your print product intact, but create a separate online product that leverages your brand name. They are cheaper to maintain. (although to drive traffic, they went out and signed up a lot of big names to blog/write). 2) Don't keep everything separate. A dollar of advertising revenue from online content is just as good as a dollar of revenue from the print product. Make sure your sales people sell it all (many places still try to sell them separately) and in tandem. 3) Online branded conferences, using the Atlantic name, which has proved a great source of revenue (and a life saver) for many smaller niche brands.

The story is great -- considering what a sieve the Atlantic was -- but I am certain it is a formula that is only replicatable to a certain extent. The Atlantic has several things going that many small publishers of niche magazines don't. It is a very old brand name that has a loyal following with a tasty demographic for advertisers. That said, good for them!