Digital News Weekly Magazine

From portfolio..

There's been a lot of talk lately about the decline and fall of newsweeklies, some of it fueled by the shift of U.S. News & World Report to biweekly, and then monthly, publication. But U.S. News hasn't given up on the idea of the weekly news digest. In fact, later today, in a soft launch, it will rolling out a new product: a "digital newsweekly" that reproduces, in pixels, what the magazine once did in ink and paper.

"We're creating a tailored product for readers that does what the old newsweeklies did, which was to stop time for people and say 'What the heck happened over the last week?' and make sense of it," says editor Brian Kelly. U.S. News Weekly, as the new publication is called ("It sounds ironic," acknowledges Kelly) will be produced and delivered as a downloadable PDF file, laid out in the form of a magazine, complete with a cover and table of contents. For years, publishers have been offering such digital editions of their magazines with the help of vendors such as Zinio, but U.S. News Weekly is a whole new, albeit related, publication, edited for a somewhat different audience than U.S. News & World Report.

Whereas the parent title has gravitated toward advertiser-friendly topics like health and education, the digital weekly will be "very Washington-centric," says Kelly, with a tighter focus on politics and policy. Since there's less ad support for that type of content, U.S. News Weekly will be a premium product: A one-year subscription will cost $19.95 (although subscribers to U.S. News & World Report will be able to download it for free). "This is what every editor's trying to figure out right now -- how can I pay my reporters to do reporting?" says Kelly. "You've got to figure out a way where, on some level, the consumer is going to pay for some type of content."

(Of The New York Times's much-maligned premium-content program, Times Select, Kelly says, "I always thought that was an experiment they never should have abandoned. If you can get 200,000 people to pay for a product, you're doing very well.") The upside for the readers, he notes, is that they're only paying for content -- and not for the expense of shipping and printing.

And because there's no need to budget time for those processes, U.S. News Weekly will have near-instantaneous turnaround: The magazine will close on Thursday night and be made available at noon on Friday. "I don't think the newsweekly concept's outdated," says Kelly. "I think it's the delivery method that's outdated. To produce a great report, close the magazine on Thursday night and then readers don't get it until Monday -- that's insane."

New digital tennis magazine

Using the Ceros engine, have a look at the new

ezine called Tennis Head from Advantage Publishing. Its run by ex Future MD Mike Frey and follows them losing the LTA's magazine "Ace" to Seven Squared.

8020 is no more

This is a shame. Not only a brave venture, I feel it was a neccessary experiment and at the very least, showed that a model with the web at the core really could thrive with reader involvement. As Samir says, its pretty much a candle in the wind, and a lot of other publishers should have the courage to follow suit...

Yet again, its all about the ads..

(More) 2009 predictions

This time on ebooks.

A digital magazine renaissance ?

As we head into the uncharted waters of 2009, Josh Gordon has a think piece on how to unlock value in digital magazines.


Unfortunately, you only have to read the last line - "I challenge the digital magazine industry to from an association and do the research. I’d love to help do it." to grasp that the whole piece is really about everyone forming a committee to convince advertisers and readers alike that they are serious.

With respect, Josh, the LAST thing we need is another committee. What we need is some blazingly successful products....

Zinio on the Inside track

Digital magazine distributor Zinio has announced the launch of Inside, a search function that enables publishers and users to search content within digital magazine products.

“If you or your company are covered in a magazine and you want to share it, who wants to send a link to a site when you can send the actual layout,” says Zinio,“No one else does this.”

The service—which is free to users and to publishers who currently have an account with Zinio—lets users send digital “replicas” of magazine pages over e-mail and post articles to Web sites and blogs and social networking sites like Facebook and Digg. In addition to the search functionality, Zinio Inside can also suggest additional editorial content and offer purchasing options for either a single issue or a 12-month subscription.

Zinio Inside will launch with more than 1,000 magazine titles in the company’s digital library, Zinio says.

You beauty

New Beauty Magazine is one of the most stylish around

- and now you can see a digital version in all its glory - for free !!

Go to www.newbeauty.com for more information.

NxtBook looks to reKindle sales

Nxtbook Media, a digital magazine vendor, recently announced that its customers will have the option to publish their content on Amazon’s Kindle. Nxtbook says it is the first digital magazine producer to offer Kindle support.

The Kindle has been both praised and criticized for its text-heavy, black-and-white display. Unlike the often flashy, oversized color presentation normally associated with digital magazines, Nxtbook intends to offer the magazines in text form.

Digital magazines can be accessed from the Kindle through the device's integrated browser. (The feature is listed on the Kindle's "Experimental" menu, something that Nxtbook hopes Amazon will eventually change.)

Nxtbook also says that Kindle support will be offered at no additional cost to customers of Nxtbook Media's Liberty program. A number of magazine publishers have already packaged their content for the Kindle. Last month, Newsweek released a collection of election coverage as an e-book series for the Kindle.

Dennis aren't Monkeying around...

Its official - digital magazines DO work.





Look at the ABC's posted by the Dennis portfolio - iGizmo, Monkey and iMotor.

• Monkey - recorded 283,541 average readers per issue, marking its fourth successive ABCe rise and its best result since launching in 2006.


• iGizmo - iGizmo attracted 101,785 average readers per issue.


• iMotor - registered a circulation of 108,622.

Dennis claims that advertising responsiveness has been very high with the digital titles, with a recent car manufacturer promotion in iMotor delivering over 200 test drives and 400 brochure requests from a single insertion.

Bruce Sandell, head of new product development at Dennis, said: "We now have over 1.4m readers [per month] opening, engaging with and enjoying our digital magazines.
"Our readers are also spending over half an hour immersed in each issue which makes the environment a very different proposition to websites, where the audience is far more likely to dip in and out.

"This audits prove that the digital magazine sector is a viable, growing and successful business model."

Daily print magazine goes web only

Big News ! The Christian Science Monitor is about to become the first national newspaper in the US to go web only.

Its ditching print after 100 years and had a circulation as high as 220,000 in the 1970s, but now sells around 52,000 copies each day, while the website attracts 1.5m visitors a month.

It is forecast to lose $18.9m in the year ending April 30. The switch to web-only publication is projected to help cut this loss to $10.5m by 2013.

It is a development that will be watched closely by other newspaper publishers already struggling to maintain circulation levels and now facing the added threat of a significant fall in advertising revenue in 2009.

However, because the Monitor is run as a non-profit business, and is subsidised, its experience is somewhat different to most newspapers.

The end of the Christian Science Monitor as a daily newspaper comes at a tough time for the US newpaper industry as hundreds lose their jobs across the country.
Yesterday, Tribune Co's Los Angeles Times announced it was to cut 10% of its editorial staff, laying-off 75 employees as part of a 200-person reduction that began last week.

The New York Times cut jobs earlier this year and USA Today's owner, Gannett, is also cutting more jobs having announced 120 were to go in August.
The Star-Ledger, the biggest newspaper in New Jersey, said last week it was to make about 40% of its newsroom staff redundant with around 150 jobs going.

Love is in the air for digital magazines

I had a heads up on this after having two of their team on my course last month - this is a really interesting development given the target demographic (which of course is older...)

Mills & Boon is making a major commitment to e-book publishing with the decision to make dozens of new titles available as digital downloads every month.
It is is making all titles available as e-books every month, with the exception of its special releases, centenary products and summer sale books.

Mills & Boon admits that one of the benefits is that fans can read the books in "total anonymity", allowing them to avoid the embarrassment factor. It also says that it will mean fans won't have to wait for the latest titles to be delivered, as they can be downloaded instantly.

One of the things I discovered was that the top search on their site is "knickers"

Fancy that..

BtoB digital pubs on the increase

The number of publishers claiming qualified electronic editions-i.e. digital copies-on their most recent BPA circulation statements increased 28 percent, according to the company. There were 286 in June, up from 224 in December.

Cimarron Buser, SVP, marketing and business development at Texterity, added that "the increased use of laptops in a paperless world" has also helped spur on the increase of digital.

Despite the increase, digital still accounts for a small percentage of the overall circulation mix. On average, electronic editions made up 13 percent of total circulation for all BPA members. In fact, of the top 20 magazines in terms of digital circulation tracked by BPA, just one-Renewable Energy Focus-claims a majority of its circulation digital-only.

Oracle claimed a digital distribution of 146,545-a 19 percent increase-during the first half of the year, topping all BPA titles in digital circulation. Electronic editions now comprise almost 30 percent of Oracle's total subscriber base.

The UK's first user generated magazine

I've evangelised about this a lot on the PPA Training courses I do, and I'm now putting the readers content where my mouth is.

Merricks Media is set to publish an edition of Greece Magazine comprised entirely of reader created content – the first time that this has ever been done in the UK.

The November issue will become "Your Greece Magazine" reflecting the unique issue content; which is entirely provided by the readers themselves. From tips on how to find the best tavernas in Crete to how to avoid paying too much for your taxi in Athens, every article has been crafted by the readers of Greece magazine.

The magazine is the only publication targeted at the hundreds of thousands of people in the UK who regularly travel to or have a second home in Greece, and is dedicated to delivering the best coverage on travel, food, culture and the Greek lifestyle.

The innovative approach has already driven a massive response, with hosts of pictures, articles and features piling onto editor Karen Birch’s desk.
"We are really excited about being the first magazine in the country to do this", says Karen. "Our readers have always been very passionate about every aspect of Greek life, and are always keen to write in and tell us what they think. We’ve been overwhelmed by the response to the special issue."

John Weir, Publishing Director at Merricks Media said "Its vital that magazines serve their communities as closely as possible, and extending the conversation we are having with our readers into a dedicated issue seems a natural progression. We know this will result in more sales of the magazine and a better relationship with our audience."

The November issue of Greece magazine goes on sale on the 30th October and is available at all WH Smith stores priced £3.95

Green magazine walks the digital walk

Looks like some people are getting it...

Publisher Planet Ink is launching a lifestyle magazine covering environmental issues, which will be published without a print edition.

Ecoforyou, which launches on October 21, will be available free to users in digital page-turn format. It will be funded through both sponsorship and advertising.

50 million digital magazines to be given away

Zinio are set to give away over 50 million digital magazines. Folio has the story...

Green may have gone mainstream, but digital magazines are far from reaching critical mass. A big reason for that is awareness.

Those that do read digital magazines, however, are increasingly citing environmental friendliness as a reason for subscribing to them. Which is why Zinio, the digital magazine vendor, has launched GoReadGreen.com, a Web site where more than 200 publishers—including Hachette, Wenner Media and Reader’s Digest—have agreed to offer some 50 million free digital magazine subscriptions to build digital awareness and, in turn, save the financial and environmental costs of publishing copies of magazines, the vast majority (70 percent by some industry estimates) of which die at the newsstand.

“We’ve seen thus growing undercurrent of consumers who see the benefits of sustainability,” Jeanniey Mullen, executive vice president, chief marketing officer at Zinio, said. “But the general consumer walking down the street doesn’t even know what a digital edition means—they think it means the Web."

The launch is part of Zinio’s Read Green Initiative, the company’s large-scale call-to-action to inspire consumers to embrace an environmentally sustainable alternative to traditional print.
“We wanted to do something on a large-scale that would take the barrier of cost away,” she said, “and allow consumers to sample digital editions, while publishers can provide the environmental benefits of digital and not incur the huge waste—and huge cost—of printing magazines.”

A portion of the proceeds, Zinio says, will go toward purchasing “eco unit credits” and “more trees.”

Digital magazines go mainstream

ITV.com are tying up with Menzies Digital to offer digital magazines on demand.

John Menzies Digital is pleased to announce its latest partnership with ITV Consumer, to provide the ITV Digital Newsagent. The partnership gives ITV.com users access to digital versions of top UK consumer magazines to download to their computers. Titles are available to buy via the www.itv.com/digitalnewsagent site.

Caroline Knight, Commercial Partnerships Manager, itv.com says: "With a large user base, many of whom are web savvy and interested in entertainment and lifestyle based content, itv.com is ideally placed to help John Menzies Digital reach a wider audience."

The launch will be supported with an excellent introductory offer enabling consumers to try the service for free: every user will be able to download a magazine of their choice from the site simply by registering on the site. The offer is available until the 30th September 2008 or the first 10,000 downloads, whichever is the earlier.

The service will be promoted to consumers through online ads to be shown across itv.com, and in their regular email communications. With over 100 magazines currently available and a raft of new publishers expected soon, there is a wealth of both lifestyle and specialist content to complement subject areas on itv.com.

Simon Clough, Managing Director of John Menzies Digital, says: "This is a particularly exciting partnership for us, because our service is all about providing high quality content digitally, something that ITV.com have proved themselves to be at the forefront of."

New digital magazine for Manchester

American company NXTBOOK has launched a free digital business magazine in Manchester, reports How Do.

Nxt Manchester is a 41 page digital title that has been sent to 100,000 business people in Manchester and surrounding areas.

The launch issue offers business stories, interviews and profiles.
Operations manager Amber Stephens said “the actual number of people who view the magazine will be a lot higher” than the 100,000 distribution list. “Using the NXTBOOK format we are able to gather extensive stats, so it will be interesting to monitor this in time for the next issue,” she added.

Amazon Kindle to launch in the UK

Lots of coverage in the media this week on the imminent launch (potentially) of the Amazon Kindle in the UK later this year. Its hugely popular on the other side of the pond - analysts put sales of the original Kindle as high as 380,000 as it becomes the Apple "iPod of the book world."

The Sunday Times was positively effusive in its coverage , saying that "Now another technology that has been around for 20 years may finally go mainstream — the e-book."

In addition to the Kindle, Sony's much heralded ebook reader is also set to launch through Waterstones, with a price point of £199.

Digital magazines come of age

Good post by Dylan Stableford at Folio on the viability of advertising models for digital magazines.

In the post he makes the point that "The future of digital magazines belongs to content publishers who use them to capture a unique content niche, crawl into it, define it, dominate it, and attract a unique audience to it. Once that audience is established, advertisers will follow. "

And to make the point he cites the example of digital magazine Avantoure - which he thinks may just cut the mustard commercially.

We shall see..

Whose content is it ?

With all the furore over mygazines this week, you’d be forgiven for thinking that magazine publishers had missed the news for the last 5 years. Then again, if they’re reading their own news pages they are probably at least six months behind everyone else...

To recap for those that missed it ; the music industry has fought a protracted (and largely unsuccessful) battle against its own users in the form of P2P download sites, eventually having to settle for cut price legal downloads (like iTunes) or advertising –led models like the Sony BMG experiment.

The same copyright battle now looks likely to break out in magazine land, with several industry bodies (MPA,PPA etc) threatening to sic the legal hounds on anyone found sharing their members content without permission. I’ll remind my partner of this next time she takes home a free magazine from a show for her mother.

This sort of argument is becoming as ludicrous and ineffectual as the posted warnings at concert venues about “no photography allowed”. Er, camera phones anyone ? Face it – technology not only enables people to share content, it actively ENCOURAGES them to do it.

And lest the publishers cry “copyright” too loudly, think on this. Virtually every magazine now contains snippets from the web, photos from You Tube, comment from forums and reader submitted photos. To whom does that copyright belong precisely ?

Talking of the Press Gazette, this news should say it all. A magazine for print journalists now online only - this internet thing might really catch on.