Iconic Playboy Magazine Closes Print Edition After 66-Year Run

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Playboy March 2020 Cover (Photo courtesy: Folio)
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BOSTON—The iconic Playboy magazine, which had a cult-like following worldwide in its own way, is shuttering its print edition after a 66-year run, according to news reports. The magazine will shift to digital formal.

“It seems Playboy‘s Spring 2020 issue, on newsstands this week, will be its last,” reported Folio.com.

Quoting Playboy CEO Ben Kohn in an open letter on Wednesday, Folio said the 66 year-old magazine is ceasing regular production of its print edition and moving ahead with a “digital-first publishing schedule.”

Citing the brand’s robust licensing and e-commerce business as well as its growth in digital video subscriptions and on social media, Kohn said ongoing internal discussions at Playboy about the future of the print magazine were hastened this week by disruptions to the magazine’s production and supply chain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Folio.

“It’s no surprise that media consumption habits have been changing for some time,” Kohn was quoted as saying by Folio. “And while the stories we produce and the artwork we showcase is enjoyed by millions of people on digital platforms, our content in its printed form reaches the hands of only a fraction of our fans.”

While the print edition will cease regular production, Kohn added that Playboy plans to continue to publish some special editions and collections in print next year, according to Folio.

“Print is how we began and print will always be a part of who we are,” Kohn said. “Over the past 66 years, we’ve become far more than a magazine. And sometimes you have to let go of the past to make room for the future.”

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