Magazine publisher Conde Nast (think Wired, GQ, Vanity Fair) tells the New York Times that its best selling iPad app is the print-heavy New Yorker. Apparently people still like to read and will pay to do it. This is probably mind-blowing news to some in the publishing industry.

20,000 people have purchased iPad New Yorker subscriptions for about $60 a year. It’s tiny compared to the million print subscribers the magazine has, but it’s interesting, no doubt about it.

From the New York Times article:

The New Yorker’s popularity with iPad users could also say something about the experience people desire on the devices. Whether the glossy magazines that are Condé Nast’s specialty — those full of highly stylized photo shoots and sleekly designed page layouts — are something people prefer to view in print remains to be seen.

There’s also the demographic overlap between IPad owners and New Yorker readers to consider.

Or maybe the New Yorker app users are in it for the cartoons. Are bizarre jokes funnier on a tablet?