Business Media Blog: Zombie Publishing as Lightening Strikes Press Gazette

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Zombie Publishing as Lightening Strikes Press Gazette

Zombie publishing is alive and well. Press Gazette has raised itself from its grave and now stalks the media world again. Five years ago Quantum Business Media sold PG to messrs Morgan and Freud for a rumoured sub £1m sum, who within a short space of time found that the press would not support the awards in their ownership and the title could not afford the costs of Morgans publishing model.

The company fell into administration and the closure of PG was inevitable - until Wilmington, pressed by the enthusiasm of a former PG exec Tony Loynes, bought the title for a rumoured £100,000. Before long, Tony Loynes had gone, the title had gone weekly and staff cut to the bone. Wilmington could take it no longer and a nano second after trousering the profits from this years Press Awards announced the closure of the title. Then along comes the Frankenstein of publishing, Mike Danson. He is making a specialism of buying titles that others have struggled with and breathing some life into them. It is not clear how the Press Awards will work. Wilmington appear to be keeping some involvement. Danson may succeed where others have failed if he focusses on the digital delivery of a solution. Although the PG website is attracting reasonable traffic it has hitherto been a very Web 1.0 offering.

The magazine is a cueship. To turn the Zombie into a living breathing thing requires a complete focus on building a digital solution. Danson should not plan on making any meaningful profit from his dead tree.