• by Erik Sass , June 8, 2006

Fader magazine announced Wednesday that it is partnering with Apple iTunes to distribute its "Summer Music Issue" as a free download--marking the first time that a magazine has been made available in its entirety on iTunes. As part of the promotion, iTunes will feature the Fader issue in its "New and Notable" podcast section.

The free Fader iTunes download will be sponsored exclusively by liquor brand Southern Comfort. This is the first exclusive sponsorship deal to distribute a magazine on iTunes, although it follows a previous print deal by Philips Electronics with Time Inc. publications Business 2.0, Fortune, People, and Time to move those magazines' tables of contents to the first page--a marketing stunt to illustrate Philips' theme "simplicity."

Some marketers speculate that exclusive sponsorship deals (of the type that supported the first radio an TV programs) may return as a way of cutting through ad clutter. Meanwhile, a number of youth-oriented magazines have already rolled out mobile digital content--including Teen People, CosmoGirl, Elle Girl, and Teen Vogue--which all offer selected content downloadable to users' mobile phones. But Fader is the first to offer a full issue's content downloadable through iTunes.