Before IPC media was taken over by Time Warner, there was a significant lack and even a decrease, of readership of ther classic British music magazine, NME. Over recent years, NME has seen readership drop by 53% from 2003 to 2010. However, recently, Time Inc have taken over the whole of IPC media, including NME, and the brand is now beign taken to America, which could be argued to give it a new lease of life, where others may see it as unfair globalization of an iconic British magazine.
The synergy of IPC with Time Inc. has provided the company with wider readership both across the UK and the US, and also has enabled much more advertisement, paticularly of their own brands within the company. This has been helpful the NME, whos struggling readership had been a cause for concern among both it's publishers and some opf the British public, who of course, did not want the m,agazine to go under. Whilst being taken over, NME was taken to America, where they now host the "Club NME NYC" every fortnight, both bringing in more revenue to the magazine, and rasing awareness of it in America. This, for a start, has helped NME to start to regain some of its former glory and popularity. It has also given the NME to opportunity to express views on new American music as well as British music, allowing perhaps a broader horizon for the articles in the magazine, and again the readership.
Having said that, the NME is losing none of it's "rock'n'roll heritage"; Club NME will give those who attend "the full-on live experience of Club NME both in LA and NYC", both huge American cities where hopefully, the NME will raise it's profile, and it's sales, which will ensure the survival of the magazine both in America and in the UK. In thsi way, it could certainly be argued that taking the NME to america has given it a "new lease of life", because it has made sure that it can survive in the modern world.
The NME has kept up with modern advances, such as magazines online; the NME magazine is already the 3rd most popular music news site. Perhaps it's readers enjoy the site because of it's rolling news, 24 hours a day, and the accessibililty of the magazine conveyed across to anh internet audience. EVen though the online site has been up and running for 10 years, only recently has it been taken to America, and so within a short span of time, it has risen through the ranks to 3rd most popular, showing that by being available in America, the readership across the different types of media has increased; this is reassuring to the owners of the NME, as it means the NME is not unpopular, as may have been thought from the massive drop in sales in Britain over the last decade.
There has also been a huge increase of interest in NME radio; recently, overall listening hours have been increased to 1.3 million. Clearly the availability to get NME on the radio, and the television too, has meant more people are interested in listening to music from NME, signalling that a new generation will follow the brand, in such a way giving it a new lease of life. NME, available in paper, on the internet, on the TV, and on radio has becomne incredibly accessible, and so has become the chosen music brand for many more people; the station currently has 253000 young listeners.
There has also recently been an NME app released, available to all who have iPhones or a simiular device; again, this appeals to the youth, and so by being taken over by Time Inc, the digital platforms of the magazine have been hugely increased, possibly ensuring that even if hard copies of magazines do become redundant, there will always be versions of this iconic British brand available to people across the globe, in as many different forms as one could want.
Overall, with the takeover of IPC media by Time warner, NME has been given new life, through extended finances of the Time Warner company. Despite some of the British public being unhappy about the globalization of their brand, being open to an American audience as well will ensure the longevity and survival of the NME in todays incredibly competitive and tough market. Being available on all digital platforms is not only incredibly good for business, but the convergence of the different media into new medias, such as internet phones, will have made sure that wherever you go, it is possible to access not only the NME, but the whole of the internet. In today's tecnological age, the life of any magazine will be increased by having larger availability, and tyhe NME is no exception.
Anna Wyatt
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