• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, December 3, 2009

National Geographic Ends The Adventure

The National Geographic Society is folding the print edition of National Geographic Adventure, one of its family of spin-off titles from the flagship magazine.

Although the regular print magazine is history, National Geographic plans to maintain the Adventure Web site and will also continue publishing special newsstand editions, books, e-magazines, and mobile applications under that title. It will also continue its National Geographic Adventure Awards, which recognize explorers and adventurers.

John Griffin -- the executive vice president of the National Geographic Society and president of National Geographic publishing -- praised the magazine's "award-winning editorial," which drew "an enthusiastic audience of readers and advertisers," but concluded that "given the current advertising environment and the opportunities we see in emerging digital platforms, we think the time is right to transition the Adventure brand."

National Geographic Adventure's total ad pages fell 44% in the first nine months of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008, from 339 to 190. That's a steeper decline than National Geographic , which fell 21.4% to 251 in the same period, or other spin-offs like National Geographic Traveler, down 39.5% to 249; National Geographic Kids is basically flat at 54 ad pages in the first nine months of 2009.

The closing of the print edition follows a report by Folio: that the National Geographic Society was trying to arrange a sale of National Geographic Adventure, also noting the challenge of selling a title that bears such a heavy brand imprint, including the name and recognizable yellow border of the flagship publication.

Maxim Discord

Most major acquisitions begin with a quiet sounding out of the current ownership's willingness to sell, followed by haggling behind closed doors. Track Entertainment CEO Andrew Fox has taken a different tack in his campaign to buy Maxim from Cerberus Capital Partners.

Impatient at Cerberus' delays in setting up a meeting, Fox told the New York Post he was prepared to pay $40 million for the mag -- adding that if Cerberus didn't sell it to him, they would be forced to close the magazine by March 2010.

Cerberus remained curiously unmoved by this approach, while Fox later seemed to back down. A spokeswoman for Cerberus told one trade publication: "There will be no meeting with anyone associated with Track Entertainment." Cerberus also dismissed the suggestion that the magazine might be closed in the near future.

Sports Illustrated Set to Introduce E-Reader Edition

Sports Illustrated is preparing to introduce a digital edition of its magazine compatible with the new generation of e-reader devices, in collaboration with The Wonderfactory, a Web design firm, according to Folio:. The tablet version of SI will enable multimedia applications, including video of photo shoots from the magazine's annual swimsuit edition. The Wonderfactory is also working on e-reader versions for some other big Time Inc. titles, including the flagship newsweekly Time. In addition, The Wonderfactory is creating an application that will render digital versions of Time Inc. titles compatible with the iPhone. The news comes a few weeks after Conde Nast unveiled plans to create digital versions of its major magazines tailored for e-readers and the iPhone, which involves creating a proprietary software application based on Adobe AIR.

Radio One Axes Giant, in Print

Radio One is ceasing publication of the print edition of Giant with its current issue, due out on newsstands December 15. It is shifting the brand entirely online with a revamped GiantLife.com Web site. Tom Newman, the president of Radio One's interactive division, stated, he see this as "an opportunity to leverage our existing robust online platform to better serve Giant consumers and advertisers through our interactive medium." Radio One acquired the bimonthly urban lifestyle magazine in 2007.