I don't know about you, but I grow increasingly tired of those friendly and cheerful messages from companies that provide bills or statements which try to convince me to switch to electronic communications because it will "save the planet." That's true, but does anyone really believe that is why they are really doing it? I wish that just once, a company would say, "This will save us big bucks. It is also good for the environment, by the way. And we'll share some of our savings with you."

The same goes for magazines. One leading IT magazine last year featured a periodic "green" issue—one that was distributed only in digital form. Does anyone actually believe that this was done for any reason other than saving money to mitigate the impact of shrinkage in the print advertising base?

So as I reflect on this magazine, the last issue in a long line of AIIM print magazines (Inform, e-DOC, and Infonomics being the last three brands), I could tell you this is all about moving to a more environmentally-friendly form of digital-only information distribution. I could try to scam advertisers and stay with a magazine (albeit a digital one) by saying that people actually read digital editions of magazines with goofy page-turning technology at the same rate that they do print magazines.

However, as Nixon would say, "But that would be wrong."

Many of you are familiar with the "8 Things" posts on my blog, Digital Landfill . So, speaking as plainly as I can, let me give you 8 reasons why this will be the last print edition of Infonomics:

• There is no longer the advertising base to support distribution of a free print magazine to 30,000+ subscribers.
• The percentage of our active associate and professional membership base that choose to receive a free print magazine is now less than 50 percent.
• The industry is changing too quickly to rely on a bimonthly publication as the primary means of communication with our constituency.
• We are a small (40 people) organization with limited staff resources. We create and deliver a wide variety of educational, webinar, seminar, Web, and information products that can be better leveraged by focusing on the electronic delivery of that information and intelligence rather than on production and mailing of a print magazine.
• You have told us that YOU would rather choose what information you get, in what form, and with what frequency than get a one-size-fits-all magazine.
• Print magazines are a very expensive way of communicating with a constituency that is increasingly global rather than national.
• We are excited about the potential of our AIIM 2.0 initiative (see the full description beginning on page six)—and want to focus our full attention upon it. AIIM 2.0 marks a new and exciting way of getting you what you need—the latest and best information from the smartest people in the industry.
• And, by the way, it will save trees.

Infonomics, it's been a great ride. I am so proud of everything we have done with this magazine over the past couple of years.

However, as Kenny Rogers would say, "You've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em."

It's time to take the next step. Join us as we launch our new AIIM 2.0 initiative on April 19th. Be part of the conversation about the future of our industry.

John F. Mancini is president of AIIM. He can be reached on Facebook, LinkedIn, or followed on Twitter at jmancini77. His blog is Digital Landfill .