Against all odds, more magazines launched in the first quarter this year versus the same time last year.
“Forty-five magazines started in the first quarter,” said Trish Hagood, president of Media-Finder.com, compared with only 27 a year ago.
“It was a complete surprise this quarter,” she said.
While there are big, new launches such as the Hearst venture with Dr. Mehmet Oz, entitled Dr. Oz, The Good Life, Hagood said many are smaller and meant for a targeted audience, with examples ranging from Niche Media’s regional Austin Way to Hi-Torque’s Electric Bike Action.
In addition, Newsweek, which lost tens of millions in its last incarnation with Barry Diller IAC/Interactive and Tina Brown, is making a modest comeback under new owner IBT Media, with a high-priced 70,000 circulation print run debuting earlier this month.
And Sesame Street Magazine, which folded as a print title in 2008, is back under the aegis of Redan Publishing.