UK Forum of Magazine Publishers
(UKFMP)
Issue 17. March ’11
Beats.
Below are pages from the
magazine. From what we can
see, it’s relatively well
produced, yet it’s debatable
whether this risky investment
will pay off in the long run.
Joshua Everitt
IPC Media expand portfolio with
new magazine ‘Beats’.
4 Long time stalwart of the UK music magazine publishing industry IPC Media is
expanding once again. The publishing firm, who already own NME and Uncut,
both of which focus on relatively general genres of music, have bought the latest
music magazine to hit our shelves ‘Beats.’
Synonymous with the latest in electronic music, could ‘Beats’ signify an
expansion into more niche markets for IPC Media?
For a long time, IPC has hedged their bets by only publishing music magazines
which focus more on the mainstream music consumer; will this be an
investment risk which pays off? Surely, the gap in IPC’s portfolio will be filled
well with this new purchase?
Certainly, there are similarities between Beats and IPC’s current, previously
mentioned publications; all three of the magazines focus mainly on new
products from the industry. Beats, from what we’ve seen, will diversify their
portfolio in more ways than expanding the genre alone; the magazine has a
large section devoted to new DJ’ing equipment, and an equally large section
devoted to reviewing and analyzing new software for the creation of the music
itself. Surely, this is indicative of IPC focusing more on the aspiring music
makers themselves, as well as the consumers. This in itself may be a
manifestation of the recent surge in amateur music producers, and their
prevalence throughout media. The dawn of the internet makes it so that people
can distribute their music for free, and have practically unlimited access to
tutorials and tips. IPC catering for this constantly increasing audience, shows
that they are willing to take risks, and could show that their willingness to
embrace new markets.
With their three core audiences already being catered for by their preexisting
products, it seems moot on IPC’s part to buy Beats. But is it? The CEO Sylvia
Auton doesn’t seem to think so – “Buying Beats was a no-brainer for us – our
music publishing division needed a niche magazine, I think it lends us
credibility as a publisher to have at least one music magazine in our range
which caters for a specific audience.” She said in a press release after buying the
magazine.
Granted, the three main publishing divisions which are IPC owned mean Beats
will have a slot already, and the necessary bureaucratic shuffling which is
usually necessary when purchasing another magazine will become largely
irrelevant due to this.
In terms of the magazine itself, how will the IPC buyout effect the content? So
far, there has been no word from either IPC, or the staff at Beats regarding
whether or not the increased circulation implicit in a buyout by a company
whose products reach over 2 thirds of UK Women (mainly through the IPC
Connect division, which focuses on women’s and lifestyle magazines), and 42%
of UK Men (more usually catered for by the Inspire division, which focues on
leisure brands, including NME, and Nuts magazines), will mean an increase in
advertising or third party sponsorship to support the increased amount of
copies printed.
When writing at such an early stage it is essential to remember that most of the
opinions will be mere speculation, yet speculation increased in legitimacy
through the preexisting knowledge about IPC, and Beats. Page 3 contains
opinions from seasoned media commentators, and further press releases from
Beats themselves, and IPC.
Continued on Page 3…