Tag Archives: Fortune
Fortune publisher named publisher of Bloomberg Businessweek
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Bloomberg Businessweek announced Wednesday that Hugh Wiley has been named publisher.
He succeeds Jessica Sibley, who announced earlier this week she was leaving to become publisher of The Week.
Wiley, who is currently publisher of Time Inc.’s Fortune, will be responsible for leading Bloomberg Businessweek’s integrated sales team and driving all global advertising-based revenue for the magazine and Businessweek.com. He will begin his new role on June 28 and will report to Paul Bascobert, president, Bloomberg Businessweek.
Bascobert commented, “Hugh joins us at a very exciting time and is the ideal publisher to take Bloomberg Businessweek to the next level. Following our successful relaunch in April, we are poised for significant growth in our global reach and influence. Hugh brings the leadership, global experience, and strong client relationships to get us there.”
Daniel L. Doctoroff, president, Bloomberg L.P. said, “Hugh’s decision to join Bloomberg Businessweek is testament to our product and strategy. With strong domestic and international experience, covering both print and digital, we’re thrilled to have him on the team.”
During his tenure at Time Inc. Wiley oversaw global advertising sales for a stable of business titles; numerous relaunches, repositionings, and redesigns; and launched multiple international expansions and licensing agreements. He is credited with growing advertising revenues and market share across multiple media platforms including print, digital and events.
War of words continues between BusinessWeek and Fortune
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TALKING BIZ NEWS EXCLUSIVE
The snippy comments between Bloomberg Businessweek and Fortune have not abated.
Time Inc., the parent of Fortune, held a state of the company meeting Friday and leader John Huey — a former Fortune managing editor — gave a talk. According to those who attended, he said that BusinessWeek was like an old couch someone dumped on the side of the road and that Bloomberg took it home with them.
Huey added that Bloomberg will probably lose money on it for years, and said that Time doesn’t engage in uneconomic vanity publishing.
When told of the comments, Businessweek spokesman Carl Fischer responded, “Coming off our successful relaunch, we’re delighted that Mr. Huey is spending so much time talking about Bloomberg Businessweek.”
Bloomberg acquired Businessweek from McGraw-Hill in December and promptly overhauled the weekly, getting rid of a big chunk of its staff and bringing in a new editor, Josh Tyrangiel, who happened to be working for Time. When Businessweek relaunched in April, Tyrangiel told Talking Biz News that he really didn’t see Fortune as competition.
Fortune managing editor Andy Serwer replied at the time that he wasn’t worried about the new Bloomberg Businessweek.
Three former Fortune editors create tech site
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Former Fortune magazine editors and writers David Kirkpatrick, Peter Petre and Brent Schlender have created a new venture called Techonomy, writes Jason Fell of Folio.
Fell writes, “Kirkpatrick, Petre and Schlender say the media business behind Techonomy will be a ‘hybrid’ of original reporting, opinion, aggregated content and contributed long form journalism. According to its Web site, Techonomy will promote ‘a rational, optimistic, forward-looking, technically savvy work ethic that celebrates technological achievement, human ingenuity, and sustainable living.’
“When asked about its business plan, a Techonomy spokesperson said it ‘envisages a combination of publishing, teaching, consulting and partnerships.’ He says the conference is a revenue anchor for which Techonomy may launch a spin-off regional series.
“Previously, Kirkpatrick served as Fortune’s senior Internet and technology editor. Petre served as executive editor at Fortune—having directed coverage of technology, medicine and science—and Schlender served as a foreign correspondent.”
Read more here.
SPIN founder tried to buy Fortune
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Dirk Smillie of Forbes interviewed SPIN magazine founder Bob Guccione Jr. about the publishing business, and Guccione told him that he offered to purchase Fortune magazine from Time last year.
Here is an excerpt:
There were rumors you tried to acquire a high-profile business brand last year.
About 18 months ago I approached John Huey, editor-in-chief of Time Inc., and said, ‘Why don’t you sell me Fortune? I’ll make something interesting out of it.’ John is a friend of mine, but Fortune is rubbish. It doesn’t take chances. What’s the point of media if you’re not rocking the boat?
What did he say?
He said I’d be great at running the magazine, but Fortune is one of the pillars of Time Inc. and we’re not selling. (Forbes asked for comment from Fortune owner Time Inc. but received no comment before press time.)
Read more here.
Rejected Fortune 500 cover
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This cover, rejected by Fortune magazine, is similar to those used by the magazine when it launched in February 1930. Note the underwater homes and other satirical items.
Read more here.
Serwer not worried about redesigned BusinessWeek
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Fortune managing editor Andy Serwer tells Gillian Reagan of The Business Insider that he’s not worried about the reworked Bloomberg BusinessWeek magazine.
“I don’t think they are going to kill anyone,” said Serwer.
Reagan writes, “Fortune’s managing editor Andy Serwer shrugs about it. ‘Being big doesn’t mean anything, being the best is what is important,’ he told us over the phone.
“Serwer remembers back in 2006, when Conde Nast was preparing to launch their business magazine killer: Portfolio. Its first issue was fat with ad pages. ‘When Portfolio was coming into the marketplace, it was like, ‘They’re going to blow you guys away.” But then Conde Nast folded the magazine in April 2009.
“Fortune, the Time Inc.-owned magazine, survived.”
Read more here.
Fortune editor replies to BusinessWeek president's comment
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Michael Calderone of Yahoo! News writes Thursday that Fortune managing editor Andy Serwer didn’t take too kindly to the comment from Bloomberg BusinessWeek president Paul Bascobert that there’s much competition.
Calderone writes, “Bascobert—who serves as company president—also maintains that other leading business magazines aren’t covering the same ground, saying that long-time rival Fortune ‘has moved away from core business coverage.’
“Not everyone agrees.
“Andy Serwer, Fortune’s managing editor, said that’s ‘crazy, preposterous rhetoric.’
“‘We haven’t strayed from our mission at all,’ Serwer said. ‘This from the magazine that put James Cameron on the cover recently.’”
Read more here.
Biz magazine performance better, but still down in first quarter
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TALKING BIZ NEWS EXCLUSIVE
Business magazines continued to see their advertising revenue and pages decline in the first three months of the year, but at a slower pace than in 2009, according to an analysis of Publishers Information Bureau data by Talking Biz News.
The sector also performed better than the overall magazine industry
The 14 business magazines reported a decline 7.7 percent in ad pages for the quarter. That compares to a 9.4 percent decline for the overall magazine industry. (The data excludes ad pages from Conde Nast Portfolio and Fortune Small Business, both of which closed in the past year.)
In comparison, ad pages declined in business magazines by 28.7 percent in 2009.
The publications that performed the best included Inc., which saw a 17.8 percent increase in ad revenue and a 15.4 percent increase in ad pages, and Wired, which reported a 20.1 percent increase in ad revenue and an 11.2 percent rise in ad pages.
Fast Company reported a 16.9 percent increase in ad revenue and a 10.5 percent in ad pages, while Barron’s reported a 13.3 percent jump in ad revenue and a 7.5 percent increase in ad pages.
The worst performing business magazines during the quarter were the big three — Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Forbes and Fortune.
BusinessWeek reported a 17.8 percent decline in ad revenue to $27.9 million for the quarter, and an 18.7 percent decline in ad pages for the quarter to 210.49 pages.
Forbes reported a 15.6 percent drop in ad revenue to $46.9 million and a 20.3 percent decline in ad pages to 341.68 pages.
Fortune reported an 11.4 percent decline in ad revenue to $33.6 million and a 16 percent drop in ad pages to 265.63 pages.
Overall, the magazine industry reported a 3.9 percent decline in ad revenue. The 14 business magazines reported a 6.4 percent decline in ad revenue in the first three months of the year. Last year, the business magazines reported a 21.7 percent decline in ad revenue.
See all of the data here.
Fortune/CNNMoney name Hartman group publisher
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Jed Hartman has been named the group publisher of Fortune magazine and CNNMoney, its online home, according to a memo from Time Inc. president Mark Ford posted on FishbowlNY by Alex Alvarez.
The memo states: “Jed will oversee both brands, working closely with Fortune publisher Hugh Wiley and CNNMoney senior vice president Liberty Carras, reporting to me.
“Jed joins us from The Week, where he has served as publisher since 2007. Under his leadership, The Week has seen extraordinary advertising growth. In 2009 — as we all know a particularly hard year — Jed led the magazine to double-digit growth, earning the #7 spot on the Ad Age A List. In addition, he oversaw sales and marketing for the launch and re-launch of TheWeek.com.
“As many of you know, prior to his joining The Week Jed spent nine years at Time Inc., first as an account manager and later as a sales director managing the New York sales team for the Fortune/Money Group. I couldn’t be more pleased to have him back.”
Read more here.
Why Quick's column already is much better than Bartiromo's
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When Fortune magazine announced last week that CNBC anchor Becky Quick would begin writing a regular column for the glossy, a few snickers were heard among business media insiders.
Here we go again, another business magazine trying to pull in readers with name recognition and a pretty face.
However, after reading Quick’s first column, I can say that her effort — in one attempt — already surpasses the total work of her CNBC co-worker.
Quick, a former Wall Street Journal reporter, goes after CEOs who don’t do a good job of admitting when their companies make a mistake, particularly one that injures a consumer.
She pulls no punches. “Most of us learn in kindergarten that when you hurt someone, you say you’re sorry,” Quick writes. “But captains of industry seem to have forgotten the rules of common decency. Instead of manning up and admitting their mistakes, far too often corporations and CEOs choose to deny, deflect, or deceive.”
Ouch. The column is here. It’s in the newly redesigned Fortune, which is a vast improvement from the old version.