Anthill Magazine bites the dust

Much has been written about the demise of newspapers as diminishing ad budgets move to the internet. But magazines are also doing it tough. The latest to close is the print version of investor and high-growth publication Anthill Magazine, which will now become a purely online publication.

In February, publisher James Tuckerman told SmartCompany the magazine would move from bi-monthly to quarterly. He also hiked the price from $7.95 to $9.95. But that didn’t work and he has just announced he is closing the print version altogether.

He should have seen it coming. When he decided to go quarterly, he blamed large advertisers who had cancelled or delayed spending on campaigns, plus the rising costs of paper and petrol prices.

But changing the frequency of publishing was akin to shuffling the deck chairs. It also distracted him from trying to build a presence online and risked further annoyance to readers and advertisers.

For magazine lovers, there is now little choice left when it comes to high quality business publications. We have seen the Bulletin fold last year and Time magazine is now so thin and devoid of Australian content it is a waste of the cover price. BRW magazine has a new editor who has breathed a little new life into the publication, but many commentators have suggested that its days are numbered.

And more US business magazines are expected to fold as they struggle with cuts to advertising and trying to compete with free rivals online.

The big three US financial news magazines, BusinessWeek, Fortune and Forbes are fighting it out. McGraw-Hill Cos recently put BusinessWeek up for sale.

“I don’t think that the big three will remain standing or remain in the same competitive situation a year from now, or maybe even six months from now,” Kevin Gentzel, president and group publisher of Forbes Media told Reuters.

Tuckerman is confident he can continue his brand online. Certainly ditching his print version gives him a better chance.