May 23, 2016 | Vol. 69 No. 20 Read more at: minonline.com Steve Smith's App Review 2 Time Inc.'s Investor Open House Wows Press, But Not Wall Street Video Hub Conundrum: Why Are We Here? 4 Publishers Should Seize The Two apps try to aggregate audiences with mixed results. Opportunity to Define Ad "Impact" Even though investment and ad money are rushing into the digital video space, the medium remains a distribution challenge. Social channels like YouTube and now 6 Users' App Fever Cools, Accord- ing to a New Analysis Facebook have been key engines for audience growth. But as multi-title publish- ers and new aggregators look beyond social and towards OTT TV and mobile, ev- 8 Google+ and Instagram Boxscores eryone wants to build an app and aggregate audiences for themselves. The video for April Might Surprise You hub strategy has multiple challenges. First, it relies on an app channel that has proven weak in discovery and recidivism. This basic problem is compounded by the 10 Like Hearst's Shelter Titles, GH fact that most people just want content that interests them, whether it is text, im- Experiments With Color-Themed Issue age or video. Most of us don’t decide to slip into video viewing mode on our phones by seeing what is up at apps like The Scene or go90. Continued on page 3 The Challenge Facing Amy Astley at Architectural Digest Can the new EIC implement change while maintaining AD's prestige? When Margaret Russell succeeded Paige Rense as Architectural Digest editor-in-chief nearly six years ago, the former Elle Decor EIC filled the alleged communication void with the business side and helped make the AD 100 top designers (January) and the Design Show (March) into well-attended events without compromising editorial integrity. With Teen Vogue editor-in-chief Amy Astley moving intra-Condé Nast to succeed Russell on May 19, the reason behind Russell's ouster is less clear. Was it due to her lack of "digital chops," as Women's Wear Daily speculated? What the move does do is enhance the authority of Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour in her dual capacity as CN artistic director. Astley first worked for Wintour at House & Garden in 1988 before joining her as Vogue beauty director in 1993 before launching Teen Vogue a decade later. The CN announcement cited Astley's experience as "de facto personal interior stylist" for the late CN editorial director Alexander Liberman as an asset that she will bring to AD. But will that earn Astley the respect of the design community that Russell clearly had? Astley's challenge is similar to that of Allure EIC Michelle Lee, who replaced founding EIC Linda Wells last November. Bernie and the Beasts Sanders, two wolves, and Stefani topped the January readership charts. From Bernie to Blake, from critters to Cosby. A variety of images adorned the covers of the top indexing print-magazine titles in January, as measured by GfK MRI's Issue Specific (IS) Readership Study. Continued on page 7 © 2016 Access Intelligence, LLC. Federal copyright law prohibits unauthorized reproduction by any means and imposes fines of up to $150,000 for violations. minonline.com Can Ripp Pull Off the Second 'Time Inc. Century'? Media Industry Newsletter CEO's goal is to make Luce's legacy a force across all platforms. Editor-in-Chief: Steven Cohn On May 17, Joe Ripp and his lieutenants hosted an investor open house at the new Liberty ([email protected]) Street corporate headquarters to showcase Time Inc.'s transformation into a one-stop shop 203/899-8437 Digital Media Editor: for e-commerce, native advertising, video, mobile (with the launch of Instant, a video platform Steve Smith covering digital celebrities), data (acquisition of Viant) and events (acquisition of inVNT). ([email protected]) 302/691-5331 Content remains the cornerstone, only now it's distributed on multiple platforms. People min especially has become a multimedia powerhouse (it seems that much of editorial director Editorial Director: Michele Shapiro Jess Cagle's time is spent in front of a camera interviewing celebrities). Yet, ironically, with ([email protected]) 646/745-4152 all the technological advances at the company, Ripp projected that in 2016, two-thirds of the Group Editor: Caysey Welton corporate revenues ($3.1 billion in 2015) would come from print. ([email protected]) 203/899-8431 Time Inc. founder Henry Luce would likely welcome that news. Back in February 1941, Luce Editorial Assistant: Jameson Doris wrote the seminal essay "The American Century," in which he argued that internationalism, ([email protected]) not isolationism, was the path to take for the U.S. to become a global leader. Eventually, VP/Publisher: Amy Jefferies ([email protected]) World War II and the Cold War proved Luce's prediction correct. Director of Market Development: He was also prescient with his then-18-year-old company in making Time, Fortune and Life Laurie M. Hofmann ([email protected]) (where his essay appeared) the nation's leading newsweekly, business and general interest Senior Marketing Manager: magazines. The 1954 launch of Sports Illustrated would come before Luce's death in 1967, Danielle Sikes ([email protected]) and Money (1972), People (1974) and Entertainment Weekly (1990) would further buttress Marketing Manager: Rachel Feldman Time Inc. as the magazine leader in the 20th century. ([email protected]) But the first 16 years of the 21st century were harsh with magazines harmed by economic Senior Account Executive: Tania Babiuk downturns and from the consumer shift from print to digital. Jeff Bewkes and his predeces- ([email protected]) sors at Time Warner had put no corporate money into Time Inc. for the decade leading to the Production Manager: Sophie Chan-Wood 2014 spinoff. That's what Joe Ripp—a former TW executive and private equity specialist— ([email protected]) walked into. In 2014 and 2015, Ripp did the proverbial "two steps backward" (layoffs, restruc- Graphic Designer: Yelena Shamis turings, etc.) before embarking on that "one step forward." ([email protected]) Data and Analytics Manager: Despite his recent effort to rally investors, Time Inc. stock was trading at under $15 per share Stacy Hill through May 19. That is well below the $24.26 fifty-two week high set last June. Luce and his ([email protected]) successors had the wherewithal to wait nearly two decades for SI to become profitable, but Access Intelligence, LLC President & patience is no longer a virtue with an investment community that Ripp was once a part of. Chief Executive Officer: Don Pazour SVP, Media Group: Diane Schwartz Chief Operating Officer: Heather Farley Vogue Trips Up During Spring Lull Subscriptions/Client Services: According to our Social Media Boxscores (see page 8-9), April BY THE NUMBERS 888-707-5814 was a cruel month for Vogue, which saw a 29% drop in likes List Sales: MeritDirect, 914-368-1090 Instagram Likes ([email protected]) on Instagram. Many factors can be attributed to this slight Advertising: 203-899-8498 but notable decrease from March. The impeccable quality of Reprints: Wright’s Media, the brand's posts didn't waiver, but the month was light on 877-652-5295 ([email protected]) the types of events that tends to cover. 52% Editorial Offices: 10 Norden Place, Vogue Reader's Digest ben- Norwalk, CT 06855; 40 Wall Street, New York Fashion Week isn't until September, and the 50th floor, New York, NY 10005; efitted from not posting Faxes: 203-854-6735, 212-621-4879; Met Gala took place in early May, so the brand's Instagram text-heavy images www.minonline.com feed was short on noteworthy runway and red-carpet looks. Access Intelligence LLC, 9211 Corporate Blvd, 4th Floor, Rockville, MD Reader's Digest, on the other hand, had much to celebrate. 20850; Ph: 301-354-2000 Published The brand reported a 52% surge in likes on the social photo- 2016 © by Access Intelligence LLC. Distributed via email and online. For sharing app. In the months preceding April, RD posted many 29% email and postal address changes, allow 2 weeks notice. Send to: Client text-heavy images. But as soon as April arrived, it opted to Vogue saw a decrease Services or call 888-707-5814. For advertising info contact 301/ 354- "spring clean" its images so that more than half were posted in likes the month be- 1629. Contents may not be reproduced fore the Met Gala in any form without written permission. on Instagram sans text. Sharpening its focus on photos rather Subscription Rate: $1,199.97 than words benefited the brand. See Boxscores on page 8 2 Magazine Media’s Most Trusted Source Since 1947 5/23/2016 minonline.com Steve Smith's App Review The Video Hub Conundrum: Why Are We Here? (continued from page 1) That said, Condé Nast and Verizon both pushed ahead with an app strategy, but from entirely different design and tactical directions. The Scene takes a design-heavy, curated approach to aggregating Condé Nast Entertain- ment’s many magazine, native and partnered sources. The home page of the new app high- lights top videos from a customizable selection of its highly eclectic categories (recipes, arts and leisure, workouts, news, drinks, and on and on). They come from sources from within and outside of CN, the magazines and sites like Buzzfeed, AOL, PBS, and The Onion. The basic deisgn of The Scene enjoys the usual Condé polish. There is a big thumbnail, clear source branding, a Save and Share tool, all available at the main feed. Drop into a video and related clips cascade beneath it.