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ASME and the MPA released this viral video that tells the story of the last decade (2000 to 2009) in magazine covers. We love!

Industry buzz ASME, covers, decade, magazines, MPA, video

Earlier this month, The Economist launched a mobile newsstand of sorts, allowing  New Yorkers to get the week’s Economist overnighted to their home. It’s a simple system: Readers sign up for weekly texts, which arrive on Thursday, listing each week’s top stories and topics for the next day’s magazine. If they’re interested, all they have to do is click on the link and order by 9 p.m. The Economist will be hand-delivered to their door by 6 a.m. the next morning, before newsstands even get them. The overnighted copies cost $6.99, the same as the newsstand copies, and the system gives the Economist a better idea of what news topics readers respond to the most. The publication first tested the text message system in England, and it’s hoping to roll it out to the entire U.S. But hopefully by then it will be as easy as simply responding to the text to get a copy (rather than going to a website to order). Read the full story here.

Industry buzz Economist, magazines, mobile, newsstand, text

Magazines are dreaming up creative ways to sell their top real estate—the cover. But trying to bring in cover revenue while still appeasing ASME is a sticky situation. You could be as blatant as Parent & Child, with its corner cover ads. You could be sneaky like Esquire, with windows or flaps that reveal ads. You could be tricky like Entertainment Weekly, with it’s “pull this!” pocket cover that reveals an ad for a TV show. Or you could be high-tech like Popular Science.

Check this out: Popular Science’s July issue has a 3-D cover that, when you hold it up to a computer Webcam, your computer displays “Flash-based imagery” that you can blow on (through your computer’s microphone) making the windmills’ blades rotate and revealing a GE ad. This “augmented reality” encourages readers to interact with advertisements, and it’s becoming the next big marketing gimmick. Papa John’s is making pizza boxes that, with the help of a webcam and some augmented reality technology, turn into a virtual car. Beef Jerky company Jack Link is doing it, too.

If you don’t have Popular Science, you can print a copy of the cover and do it yourself here.

Industry buzz 3-D, advertising, augmented reality, cover, magazines, marketing

Who wouldn’t love a magazine you can wear? Or hang on your wall? Or Frisbee around in a park? Well, now you can get all those things, as publishers are pushing the print boundaries more and more and turning their magazines into useful, beautiful new 3-D manifestations. A recent Wall Street Journal article highlighted a few impressive examples, such as T-Post, a magazine that sends its subscribers a t-shirt with a story written inside of it (like the one in this picture). Or Freestyle, a magazine that published once in a Frisbee (really). Or Visionaire, a limited-edition publication that has included such oddities as taste strips, tiny toys or miniature perfumes. As the WSJ article notes, publishing in this form “makes the reader interaction deeper,” and it offers something that “websites and digital distractions can’t match.” We definitely agree; and we want a T-shirt, too!

Industry buzz 3-D, magazines, T-shirts

This month’s issue of FOLIO magazine features a column by TMG’s very own Jane Ottenberg. Titled “Give Print a Chance,” the piece explains how hype, not reality, is hurting the print business. Take a look, and tell us your thoughts.

Jane also used the space in FOLIO to launch a campaign to fight back against the “print-is-dead” naysayers. In her column she wrote: “Journalistic content isn’t dead. And neither are magazines. Let’s get out of the collective bomb shelter and start fighting back. There are all kinds of good magazine stories out there.” Inspired, Jane launched MagazineROIStories.com, an interactive blog for everyone in the media business to contribute their ROI stories to and use as a resource. Users can post their stories, positive press or benefits of magazines. Check it out.

Industry buzz FOLIO, launch, magazines, ROI, TMG

There’s little doubt that times are tough in magazine publishing right now. With ad revenues sinking lower and lower, what’s going to save the freebie magazines that have solely relied on that cash flow? According to an article in this week’s Newsweek, the answer might no longer be found in the price of ad space, but it perhaps it can be found in the price of the actual magazine. It seems the days of free magazines—or even $10 subscriptions—might be numbered. Increasingly, magazines are upping their newsstand and subscription prices to help replace what’s gone missing in advertising revenue. According to Mr. Magazine, the average price of a magazine on the newsstand is now $8.10, compared with $5.37 in 2000.

Industry buzz magazines, newsstand, Newsweek, price, revenue, subscription

The Advertising Research Foundation (ARF) just wrapped up its 55th annual Re:Think Convention and Expo in New York yesterday, where corporate leaders and marketing execs gathered to discuss media research and marketing innovation. According to Advertising Age, executives from Avon made a compelling case for not abandoning magazine advertising, especially for youth brands. Avon discussed its marketing strategy for its youth-focused Mark makeup brand and cited its recent study that found “that people are much more likely to pay attention to magazine ads than online ads.” See the full Advertising Age article here.

Industry buzz advertising, ARF, magazine, magazines, marketing, media, research

A new study was released today that claims TV and magazine ads are more effective than Internet ads. The study, from McPheters & Company, in co-operation with Conde Nast and CBS Vision, compared 30-second TV ads; full-page, 4-color magazine ads; and internet banner ads and used eye-tracking software to determine if the ads were actually seen. After perusing all the mediums, the study’s respondents had to fill out a survey asking which ads they recalled seeing and the medium they saw them in. The results? Within half an hour, magazines effectively delivered more than twice the number of ad impressions as TV and more than 6 times those delivered online. Take a look at the other findings here.

Industry buzz advertising, magazines, online, studies, TV

Everyone’s buzzing about the Silicon Valley start-up that’s supposedly developing the next big thing for the newspaper and magazine industry—a 8.5-by-11-inch Kindle-type touchscreen e-reader that will allow you to view and read newspapers and magazines from anywhere (through a wireless network). Made entirely of plastic—and appropriately named Plastic Logic—the first models aren’t expected to reach consumers until 2010, and will display ‘zines and ‘papers in standard black and white. Expect to wait longer for your magazine spreads to hit the e-reader’s screen in full, glorious color. Publishing houses hoping to have their content on the Plastic Logic reader have to partner with the company so their articles will be available to consumers through the Plastic Logic Content Store (think iTunes, but for articles). Also, check out Time magazine’s recent article on the device, and yesterday’s article in The New York Observer.

Industry buzz content, e-reader, magazines, newspapers, publishing, technology, wireless

The magazine industry is mulling over yesterday’s article in The Big Money where Gabriel Sherman argued that magazines are not—in fact—dying. Instead, Sherman says, some magazines or spinoffs  were created solely to capture certain booming segments of the market. Now that many of those segments are booming no more, those spinoffs became the martyrs of the magazine industry pullback. Why? Because readers never became emotionally invested with the spinoffs, like they are with the flagship publications. Sherman argues that magazines are emotional products that readers build a relationship with, and we agree! Moral of the story? Focus on your core product and put quality editorial—and your readers—first.

Industry buzz editorial, magazines, spinoffs