IPC To Reshuffle TV Mag Prices
Magazine giant, IPC, has announced the cover price of its forthcoming paid-for TV listings weekly, TV easy, pricing the title at 35p and increasing the cost of its stablemate, What’s on TV at part of its long term strategy for the sector.
Over 1.5 million sample copies of the new magazine will be distributed with IPC’s Pick Me Up, Now and Woman next week, while the first on-sale issue will hit the nation’s newsstands on May 3.
The price increase for What’s on TV will see the title rise by 5p to 40p from Tuesday 31 May. IPC tx’s managing director, Philippa Brown, explained the move, stating: “With TV easy at 35p and What’s on TV at 40p, IPC tx has the most compelling offer in the value sector of the TV listings market. Our long term strategy is, and always has been, to grow all of the brands in the tx portfolio. This move is the next phase in that strategy.”
The new title will be printed in compact format, which IPC claims makes it “perfect for the arm of a sofa”, promising clear navigation and a handy quick-flick format. The magazine’s launch will be backed by a £10 million budget for promotion and marketing during its first two years, beginning with a large scale national TV campaign.
IPC will again employ Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO to handle the advertising creatives, following their success launching the company’s weekly men’s title, Nuts. Meanwhile, Walker Media will plan and buy the campaign.
TV easy will also achieve exposure as the broadcast sponsor of this year’s British Soap Awards, to be televised on ITV1 and ITV2 on 11 May. Last year, the awards ceremony peaked with nearly 10 million viewers.
The new launch is IPC’s third in just 16 months, with the publisher’s innovations programme, initiated by chief executive Sylvia Auton in 2003, already spawning Nuts and Pick Me Up.
The decision to raise What’s on TV‘s cover price follows a price cut for the title earlier this year, sparking fears of a full-blown price war in the TV listings sector. The magazine is currently the best-selling TV listings magazine in the country, with a circulation of nearly 1.6 million.
However, competition has intensified recently, with H Bauer’s TV Choice attempting to overtake the Radio Times to become the nation’s second best selling listings title (see NewsLine).
IPC Media: 0870 4445000 www.ipcmedia.com