Time Inc.’s New Chief Rethinks Magazines for a Digital Audience

In her first couple months as chief executive of Time Inc., the country’s largest magazine publisher, Laura Lang took some time to hold town hall style meetings and field questions from many of the company’s 9,000 employees. Those questions included: “Do you think print is dead?” “Will magazines survive?”

Lang talks about Time Inc. not as a magazine publisher, but as a branded news and entertainment company. She believes she can sell digital products tailored to a level of specificity not previously available.

Her theory: if users’ personal information is a treasure trove for Silicon Valley businesses, it should be equally valuable