I have been a subscriber to Gourmet Traveler for over a decade. All my magazines are in one place. I have purchased a few additional issues plus some were gifted to me.
They have released a new update. It only holds 2 years. ALL my issues are gone. I cannot access them.
I have spoken with them and nothing. To say I am annoyed would not come close.
Used to have delicious subscription as well but as soon as I stopped subscribing all my purchased issues are not available to me…
Are you subscribing directly to the publisher or through a third party such as Zinio?
Directly, never use 3rd parties.
Noted your comment in the OP.
The FAQs suggest you may need to download again all your older (back issues). Note there appear to be two ways to access subscription content. One is to download and save locally. The other is to live stream. On some services live access is limited to recent copies.
As an aside.
In a way you are using a third party. The magshop.com.au service and App. It’s the service provided by the Publisher of Gourmet Traveller (Are Media) which will own the Web Page etc. It’s likely a third party provides the Digital services used to provide the magshop.
Somewhere in your T&Cs accessible when one signs up for a digital subscription should be a reference to your rights re older purchased issues.
The range of publications provided through the service is extensive. Are Media elsewhere claim holding 60% of their target market segment. There must be many others with a similar problem.
Addendum.
‘Terms of Use | Magshop
To note, although if you have previously downloaded all your paid for editions, one would either not expect an update to the App to block access, or for the updated App to recover access.
I’ve not noted advice on what happens if one ceases to subscribe in respect of using the App or accessing off line saved copies. It’s not a problem I’ve had with two digital subscription services. One a direct issue in a common reader format. The other through Zinio.
AS I SAID
I have spoke with them and they told me that all other issues are LOST
NOT surprised that membership is not growing.
Your frustration with how the publisher has responded to you is clearly evident.
My most sincere apologies hearing that is how you feel. It was not intended to offer any more than assistance in understanding further the issue at hand.
All coming to this web site can read of your recent experience with the digital subscription service provided by Are Media. Others using the same service for the other publications it supports are also able to join in with their experiences following the App upgrade.
How it might be according to the information provided on the digital publications web site - there is information saying one can down load back issues. It does not qualify if this is restricted in any way. However the T&C’s for digital distribution state a possible 12 month restriction on content being accessible.
Whether those same conditions applied some time back for prior subscriptions and whether the digital access rights were subject to change at the discretion of the publisher are relevant questions. One would hope when approached by subscribers who have lost access to older editions the publisher would point out any relevant T&C’s.
From a consumer perspective would one expect any potential for loss of access to older digital editions is clearly advised upfront before making a purchase? I would personally expect to see that advice of any limitation on future access.
Hopefully a better understanding of why access has been lost can help all of us. If it’s not possible to get it back, knowing in more detail why can assist Choice in looking further at the broader issue of access rights to digitally distributed publications. Assumes Are Media have acted according to the relevant requirements of consumer law. You are also welcome to provide further details of your dealings with Are Media and other view points directly to Choice, (per the Conact us) option at the bottom of the web page. @BrendanMays.
I agree that having paid for a product and then later not being able to access the content is distressing and could be a breach of your ACL rights. Thank you for raising the problem here.
As @mark_m pointed out the business that provides the service has terms and conditions that offer only 12 months of access to content you have paid for and only from the date that content was first published. I don’t know how the ACCC would view such terms (they might see them as unconscionable conduct), a complaint to the ACCC may get their interest but it is unlikely that they will respond to you personally about your issue. CHOICE may also be interested in the way this type of product is provided and may undertake some investigation into it.
Did they give you any warning of this and can you download a digital version of the magazine (such as a pdf)?
I assume the answer is yes then no.
It is extremely poor customer service if they change the goal posts and not provide notice to customers nor ability of consumers to protect there own interests.
There have been other examples within the community about business changing access to digital content, even to the point where previously paid for streaming content will be gone for ever.
Digital environment works on licensing content rather than ownership. Gone are the days when someone owns something physical forever. The digital world businesses make decisions based on their own interests.
I would do the same as you…walk away from future subscriptions if this is how they choose to treat their customers.
Frustration does not come into it. I am annoyed that I spend the money and now I don’t have access to something that is ‘mine’.
I am sure I am not the only one who is not impressed. They might need time to re upload all the back copies. Will wait till next week.
I understand many back issues take up much server space but as are not a small outfit. Plus ever the years I have purchased a number of back issues…
If I get no where i will wait till I have the chance to catch up with the GT staff, and then raise the issue.
I think the magazine issue is certainly a bad look on the part of the provider of the content.
The app should have no problem serving up past issues, particularly if it just siphons from a publisher’s repository. If they store the content on their own servers this may mean they need to have some policy on the amount of content they retain, though 12 months may not be really sufficient. What is of further concern is that they limit the 12 months to a date when the content was first published. Consider if someone pays to read a particular item/magazine and they do so 11 months and 20 days after it was first published. This would for the cost of a 12 month subscription give then only around 10 days of access.
You have my sympathy. But this is yet another example of why digital is not always better. In the ‘good old days’ we have stacks of hard copies of collected sets of magazines, journals newspapers etc. Space eating certainly but always at hand should we want to refer to something past. Now we are in danger of losing what we paid for. And it is not limited to magazines either. Much like the push for going completely cashless, it is all good until it isn’t!
I cannot possibly collect 13 years PLUS of magazines living in a small space. As well digital membership is cheaper.
They did not warn or I would have moved all the saved recipes to another location
As it stands I only have 2 years of magazines. According to the app I can have 5 years.
Delicious as I no longer have a subscription, I no longer have access for what I paid for.
Now if I think of making something I have to search GT online website for the recipe. Cannot search for anything on the app.
