Friday 18th June: Ownership of UK magazine sector more diverse than newspapers

June 18, 2021

Happy Friday! Today's Media Roundup is brought to you by Peter.

Ownership of the UK magazine industry remains more diverse than the country's newspaper sector. New analysis by Press Gazette of ABC circulation data for the biggest magazine publishers in the country shows that despite consolidation, there is still a broad base of ownership.

Ownership in the B2B sector is most diverse, with the biggest players - Mark Allen and Reed Business Information - accounting for just 12% of the market each. In the consumer space, Bauer Media, Immediate Media and Future Plc controlled an estimated 37% of circulation in 2020.

This contrasts starkly with the narrow concentration of newspaper ownership in the UK. Press Gazette reported last year that just three companies controlled an estimated 80% of national newspaper print circulation and three billionaire families, almost 70%. Yay billionaires.

I believe the children are our future... me, George Benson and a growing number of US publishers. From the New York Times to America's Test Kitchen, new kid-friendly launches are seen as a way to expand audience numbers quickly and start building brand loyalty beyond inherited family reading habits.

What's New In Publishing has rounded up insights on trust from Pew Research, Reuters Institute and the Knight Foundation. Trustworthiness seems to come down to brand perception and a personal sense of whether the content is relevant to the reader.

CNN is planning to sell NFTs of its own news coverage, letting users buy coverage of elections and historic moments as 'digital collectibles'. If you don't know what any of that that means, I wrote a little thing about it. The description of media NFTs as 'modern versions of tote bags' seems even more apt after reading CNN's plans.

This week's episode:

This week, we hear from Mohamed Nanabhay, Deputy CEO of the Media Development Investment Fund. He talks about his work in the early days of online publishing bringing ‘new media’ to Al Jazeera, how the MDIF decides which businesses to invest in, and why he thinks the pandemic has provided an opportunity for independent media to thrive.

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