A digital agency based on Fleet Street has launched a free print magazine covering technology news.
Web design and digital marketing agency CHC Digital will distribute 10,000 copies of new quarterly title Faraday at 10 London Tube stations, with the first edition due out on Thursday.
Speaking to Press Gazettte, the firm’s founder and director Harrison Williams said the magazine was being created with the aim of connecting people and informing them about technology that could help make their lives easier.
“We have got our business that makes money, this is our social goodwill if you like – trying to do something that will help people,” he said.
“We are desperately trying to do our part and help people connect with each other, so doing something in print enables us to share it.
“You can go down the pub with your mates and sit there and read [Faraday] together. It’s something you can share with people in real life rather than hitting a button.”
He added: “It may sound paradoxical for a digital agency to opt for an old-school paper-based product; but even in today’s increasingly virtual world, there is still a demand for quality real-world products which people can take the time to digest, savour and learn from.”
Content will include stories generated by the company’s in-house team, which produces blogs and web content as part of its daily routine, as well as interviews with technology pioneers.
“It will be current affairs,” said Williams. “There’s certainly some news in there. There’s a fair bit that tells you what things are coming up.”
He said the company would not be relying on content from other tech magazines or websites but that it would instead monitor social media for the most popular tech topics and develop its content around them.
“The idea is to remain as original as possible,” he said. “We have created every article from scratch and every illustration has been done in house too.”
Faraday will publish content online at Faraday Tech News as well as on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Williams said the firm’s existing design team means putting the magazine together “doesn’t cost us much, other than our time”.
He added: “We have an advantage over a traditional newspaper because we have standard overheads but they are covered by our company.”
Faraday is named after English scientist Michael Faraday, who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry.
Originally posted Press Gazette 20 September 2016