I was considering subscribing until I read that you need to ring someone to cancel. That's a no-go.

I vehemently disagree with the "Economist has declined" crowd but I had to unsubscribe one time for financial reasons a few years ago and the difficulty in unsubscribing is why I will never subscribe again. I had to call a number in Singapore (where I did not live) and wait on hold for a long time.