For the second year in a row, FOLIO: rang in the fall by pilfering the local newsstand (read: Barnes & Noble) of the biggest women’s fall fashion issues we could carry, weighing them in the Red 7 mailroom and undertaking the entirely tedious task of counting ad pages before and after their editor’s notes. It’s an interesting sociological experiment for someone who rarely reads women’s magazines.

Here, in typical women’s magazine fashion, are 7 “hot” observations about this year’s fall books:

1. Fashi More...

Penton Media will name a new CEO in the next 30 to 60 days, and when it does, the executive will likely come from outside of b-to-b publishing, Anup Bagaria, vice chairman of Penton owner Wasserstein & Co. said Thursday.

Bagaria’s comment is significant because it indicates how Wasserstein executives view the future of Penton, and that future is likely to be e-media centric. “We’re talking to a lot of people, but it’s more likely to be from outside the industry,” Bagaria told me.

Which means Penton, like Cygnus Business Media and the old Primedia, is at a crossroads.

As formerly print-based publish More...

E-media as a percentage of overall revenue is nearly equal to newsstand sales for consumer publishers this year, according to the 2008 FOLIO: Consumer Magazine CEO Survey.

On average, consumer publishers expect e-media revenue to generate 8.4 percent of total revenue, compared to 8.6 percent for newsstand sales (publishers generating less than $10 million per year think e-media will account for 9.1 percent of total revenue compared to 8.3 percent for the newsstand, while publishers over the $10 million mark expect to see 6.4 percent of revenues from e-media and 8.9 percent from newsstand sales).

Print Advertising More...

For all of you high-powered, high-rolling, “wheels-up” publishing executives, consider this story about Emap’s chief executive, via London’s Daily Mail, a cautionary tale about what one should and shouldn’t joke in a Friday e-mail during a recession:

David Gilbertson, who lives in a £2.5 million house in Hampstead, north London, and drives a flashy Aston Martin DB9 with personalised number plates, signed off his regular Friday email to staff by commenting on his "huge" rented villa that could house up to 50 people.

"If you are More...

An advertiser recently canceled his schedule because his biggest competitor did. For years, his company's rationale for budgeting for an ad campaign was to be present when competition was. When the competition left, so did they.

After many discussions, I kept the advertiser but I had to rerationalize the buy. They soon realized that with their competition cutting back they could achieve a "share of voice" advantage by continuing to advertise.

The reasons companies advertise in a recession are often different than in good times. Sometimes I get surprised. I think I know an account and what makes them tick, then along comes a More...

During a recent FOLIO: magazine finance Webinar, DeSilva + Phillips managing partner Reed Phillips said that he remains concerned about the credit market and doesn't see leverage multiples for debt financing improving over the next several months.

"There are far fewer lending sources that are active now than there were a year ago," Phillips said. "That means, in terms of supply and demand, they can charge more and they can be tougher on terms. A year ago, borrowers were really in control and could dictate terms and it really got out of hand. Now, it's completely rever More...

EDITOR'S NOTE: Read more at FOLIO:'s Magazine Marketing Excellence Channel

Even with fierce competition from increasingly targeted cable offerings, the instant mass market reach of network television and encroachment of digital offerings popping up everywhere, magazines continue to offer a relevant environment, engaged readers, a variety of value-added options and, increasingly, multi-platform packages that include digital, video and/or cable.

In this heightened content-driven environment, it’s more important than ever that magazine sales management is focused on what will inform and result in a most productive agency More...

Are better times coming for boating magazines?

Citing the latest report from marine, manufactured housing, and RV industry market data firm Statistical Surveys, boating trade publication Soundings Trade Only says the intense decline in boat sales may be slowing.

"Declines in every segment are slowing compared to the activity recorded in June," Statistical Surverys national marine sales manager Aarn Rosen reportedly said in a statement. The report is based on registration data from 26 states, or about 60 percent of the U More...

So the Inc. 5000 list of the country's fastest-growing companies has just been released, and the results indicate that entrepreneurship is alive and well in the magazine industry, despite the waves of bad news recently. A slew of magazine companiesNext Step Publishing, BZ Media, EH Publishing, Agile Business Media, the Pohley Co., Scho More...

Layoffs. Reorganizations. Redesigns. New hires. Companies going on the block.

Even during the dog days of summer, there's still plenty of big magazine industry news to populate the home page at FOLIOmag.com. And, our readers haven't only been reading the stories—they've been commenting on them, too.

Here's a quick sampling of the more interesting (and unedited) comments we've received in the last few weeks, and the debates they have sparked.


From: How Do Print-Company Professionals Consume More...

Earlier this week I appeared on the Fox Business Channel’s "Money for Breakfast" show along with Samir “Mr. Magazine” Husni and Dave Kansas, a Wall Street Journal editor and president of FiLife.com, to discuss whether the magazine industry is really in as dire st More...

Yesterday, Kent Brownridge—the former Wenner Media executive who, along with Quadrangle Partners, formed Alpha Media last year after acquiring Dennis Publishing’s U.S. assets (Maxim, Stuff and Blender, though not The Week) for $240 million—announced he was stepping down as CEO. The company named a pair of co-CEOs to take his place, with Brownridge retaining the title of chairman.

This was a curious move, because Brownridge, a notorious workaholic, became known for his hands-on management style at Wenner Media, where he spent 21 years as Jann Wenner’s consigliore. An More...