'Attitude' Magazine to Fold?

[Si Hunt]

The January issue has been suspended, as the publishers have gone into receivership, apparently.

SMD Publishing is to close or sell men's monthly, Front, and gay lifestyle magazine, Attitude, unless it can raise funds to publish them.

The publisher entered talks with staff last week, explaining that it was seeking investment for the titles.

"We're in the dark about what's happening while the management waits for investment," said one staff member.

The move comes just two months after the closure of film magazine Hotdog, which had proved unsustainable due to low sales.

SMD acquired Front and Hotdog from Highbury when the publisher collapsed in 2005.

I thought a few people on here might read it and so be interested in this news. It's quite a major mainstream title to dissapear!

Si.

[WhiteCrow]

I thought magazines were supposed to fold, where the staples go???

[Rob McCow]

unless it can raise funds to publish them.

Better start combing those docks!

[Captain Tancredi]

It's not a time to be in magazine publishing full stop- just looking at Smiths in Leeds today, every conceivable interest seems to have two or three magazines aimed at it and I'd imagine that most people who read lifestyle magazines only take one or two. It says a lot about the economics of magazine and newspaper publishing that most of the newspaper websites basically allow you to read most of what goes in the paper for nothing because in cyberspace they're competing with the likes of BBCi.