Fewer magazines were launched in the first half of 2013 than in the same period a year ago, but, on the bright side, a lot fewer folded this year than last, according to MediaFinder.com. The online database of U.S. and Canadian publications released its first-half survey on Monday.And though digital-only launches remained a small piece of the magazine pie, the practice of brand-name properties spinning off iPad editions—last year's Huffington Post Magazine, for example—appeared to be gaining steam. Esquire Weekly, The Atlantic Weekly and a magazine edition of ProPublica, the investigative nonprofit, all launched on the iPad this spring.Altogether, 14 digital-only magazines launched in the first half of 2013, compared to 19 a year ago; and two shut down, compared to three a year ago. By far, the lion's share of magazine publishing activity continued to involve paper and ink.In the first half, 83 print magazines launched, compared with 114 in the same period last year. There were 27 closures, compared with 44 a year ago.Consolidation drove some of the closures, explained MediaFinder President Trish Hagood. She pointed to Babytalk, Parenting and Conceive, which Meredith Corp. bought from Bonnier Corp. in May—and promptly shut down, incorporating the subscriber lists into its own parenting titles.Some closures seemed overdue: international media giant UBM shut down tech title Game Developer in May, moving its content online. The publisher had earlier shut down the print... Continue reading at 'Crains New York'
[ Crains New York | 2013-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]