Everyone’s begging for solutions for the dismal economy – and no one more than retailers. But lucky for them, soon-to-be launched Specialty Insider will offer up insider knowledge, tips and tricks to surviving the fashion industry. Company Insider Communications Group, headed by former SVP and group publisher of Conde Nast’s Women’s Wear Daily Ralph Erardy, is hoping to debut the 52-page quarterly mag Jan. 25. It’ll be a fresh start with an initial controlled circulation of 15,000, but they might consider a paid model in the future, Erardy told Folio.
We spent the last month looking back at the first decade, and now we’re ready to look forward. What’s going to happen in the custom media industry in 2010? Do we need to get out our credit cards to read content online? Change our magazine format to read better on the new tablets? Start looking for a return on those viral videos?
In this featured video, your favorite TMGers predict the five ways content will change this year. Communications Manager Rebecca Loveridge predicts new devices will put the emphasis back on original, quality content. Principal Richard Creighton believes people will start paying for content. Video Publishing Director Kate Ottenberg says publishers will focus on ROI with online video programming. Washington Flyer Editor Michael McCarthy says magazines will walk back from the plank. Social Media Director Andrew Hanelly believes social media will get fragmented.
How do you think content will change in 2010? Tell us!
The industry is buzzing about today’s announcement of a digital storefront for publishers (read the AdAge story here), but that’s not the only thing going on in the print-to-digital content world…
Conde Nast and Adobe are building a digital version of Wired magazine, according to the Wall Street Journal. The e-reader app will be available sometime next year, and then Conde Nast will move on to building apps for the rest of its titles. The app will let readers flip through the pages as if they were in print, as well as access additional layers of content, launch videos, and link to the Web. Read the Wall Street Journal Story here.
Meanwhile, Hearst is launching a service and online store in 2010 that will deliver newspapers and magazines from a variety of publishers on a variety of electronic devices. Called Skiff, the service will work with Sprint to connect readers through dedicated Skiff e-readers sold in Sprint stores, as well as other devices. Read the FOLIO story here.
The media world has been buzzing about this for months. Now, finally, the plans for a large digital newsstand (from a consortium of magazine and newspaper publishers) are expected to be announced early next week. According to reports in the Wall Street Journal and New York Times: News Corp., Conde Nast, Meredith, Hearst, and Time Inc. are all investing in the “iTunes for print” company. The new venture doesn’t have a name yet, but, in theory, will sell content from magazines and newspapers from a single website while leaving the hardware (or reading devices) to others. The alliance would develop standards for magazine viewing on mobile phones, e-book readers, and other platforms. Time Inc. vet John Squires will be the managing director while the company looks for a CEO. Read the New York Times story here or The Guardian’s story here.
This magazine will make your coffee table look really, really good. Vintage is a “celebration of design, culture, and the creative possibilities of print.” We like! It’s inspired by Fleur Cowes’ Flair magazine, which published in the 50s. Editor in Chief Ivy Baer Sherman caught an exhibit in New York on Flair and immediately went to work creating this biannual multi-textured publication, which will feature an “eclectic roster” of artists and contributors. For a sneak peek at the content, you can read through the “Issues” section of the website.
eBay just announced the launch of a digital magazine for shoppers called The Insides Source. It will feature articles, analysis and opinions from journalists and eBay community contributors, and will cover lifestyle topics from fashion and technology to pop culture and automotive issues. It will also provide a snapshot of real time eBay Marketplace activity, including most-watched merchandise and most searched terms. The content will be directed and managed by Meredith Barnett, who jumped to the new digital pub from Lifetime Digital.
Coming this month to an iPhone near you: the December issue of your GQ magazine. Conde Nast has developed the technology to view the December issue’s content on Apple’s iPhone through a $2.99 app. This is the first time a major consumer magazine has made an entire issue available on a custom-built reader on an Apple app, breaking away from Amazon’s Kindle app. In the reader, GQ can be read in vertical or horizontal modes, and users can tap through pages and ads. It will also include video, audio, and links to external websites. The app comes out mid-November. See the full FOLIO story here.
Seventy-one new magazines launched in September, according to Samir “Mr. Magazine” Husni, the director of the Magazine Innovation Center at the University of Mississippi. Out of the 71, 18 of those titles have a frequency of four times a year or more. According to Husni, that brings the total number of print launches to 528 so far this year. “The light at the end of the tunnel is not the train coming,” Husni told Min.
Fresh on the heels of success from Men’s Health and Women’s Health, Rodale launched Children’s Health this month, with 750,000 copies of the debut issue on newsstands Sept. 15. Selling for $5.99 a copy, Children’s Health features “health and fitness advice that helps parents stay fit and keep their kids healthy and happy.” Subsequent issues will be published, depending on how the demand is for the inaugural issue. Like the other October issues of Rodale magazines, Children’s Health one features Michelle Obama on the cover and an interview with her on children’s issues.
Laid-off magazine gurus aren’t just sitting on their laurels these days. Just look at Domino ex staffer Michelle Adams, who is launching online shelter pub Lenny. Or former Prevention editor Leah McLaughlin, who is debuting this pub, Edible Queens—devoted to “celebrating the food culture of New York’s most diverse borough”—this week! Edible Queens will publish quarterly and be distributed free of charge to its advertisers. It will also host local events co-sponsored by advertisers that will bring readers into businesses. McLaughlin told FOLIO she’s hoping to reach 40,000 circ by the end of the first year of publishing.
Everyone’s begging for solutions for the dismal economy – and no one more than retailers. But lucky for them, soon-to-be launched Specialty Insider will offer up insider knowledge, tips and tricks to surviving the fashion industry. Company Insider Communications Group, headed by former SVP and group publisher of Conde Nast’s Women’s Wear Daily Ralph Erardy, is hoping to debut the 52-page quarterly mag Jan. 25. It’ll be a fresh start with an initial controlled circulation of 15,000, but they might consider a paid model in the future, Erardy told Folio.
Meanwhile, Hearst is launching a service and online store in 2010 that will deliver newspapers and magazines from a variety of publishers on a variety of electronic devices. Called 
This magazine will make your coffee table look really, really good. Vintage is a “celebration of design, culture, and the creative possibilities of print.” We like! It’s inspired by Fleur Cowes’ Flair magazine, which published in the 50s. Editor in Chief Ivy Baer Sherman caught an exhibit in New York on Flair and immediately went to work creating this biannual multi-textured publication, which will feature an “eclectic roster” of artists and contributors. For a sneak peek at the content, you can read through the “Issues” section of 
Coming this month to an iPhone near you: the December issue of your GQ magazine. Conde Nast has developed the technology to view the December issue’s content on Apple’s iPhone through a $2.99 app. This is the first time a major consumer magazine has made an entire issue available on a custom-built reader on an Apple app, breaking away from Amazon’s Kindle app. In the reader, GQ can be read in vertical or horizontal modes, and users can tap through pages and ads. It will also include video, audio, and links to external websites. The app comes out mid-November. 
Seventy-one new magazines launched in September, according to 
Fresh on the heels of success from Men’s Health and Women’s Health, Rodale launched 
Laid-off magazine gurus aren’t just sitting on their laurels these days. 
