For magazines in 2013, the year has been a case of glass half-full, glass half-empty: only 40 print titles folded during the first nine months, compared to 55 during the same period a year ago. But only 114 titles launched, compared to 155 during the first three quarters last year, according to Mediafinder.com, the database of U.S. and Canadian periodicals, which will release its latest survey of the magazine landscape on Tuesday.In other words, both launches and closures were down in the same double digit range—between about 36% and 38%."There are fewer launches, but people are still launching," noted Mediafinder President Trish Hagood. "There's life in print yet."There was one sign of a new trend: the emergence of Kickstarter as a publishing patron. Brooklyn-based quarterly magazine Popular Noise put out its first issue after raising $20,000 on the crowdfunding site.Other launches included Rodale's Conrad Magazine, a custom publishing venture with Conrad Hotels & Resorts, and Bonnier Corp.'s Imaging Edge, published in partnership with Sony."'Magalogs' have come back with a vengeance," Ms. Hagood said. "But people have to make money."Overall, the top categories for new titles were the same as they are virtually every quarter: food—Cooking, Good Cents—and regional interest (Edible Long Island, Our Wisconsin). Among the titles that folded were the usual contingent of tech and business-to-business magazines, like Game Developer and AM News, which had been published by... Continue reading at 'Crains New York'
[ Crains New York | 2013-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]