• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, September 16, 2010

Bloomberg Markets Gets Makeover

Just under a year after Bloomberg acquired BusinessWeek from McGraw Hill, Bloomberg Markets -- the quiet sister in this magazine family, which reaches all subscribers to Bloomberg's exclusive business information service -- is getting a makeover. The goal is to grab a larger piece of business magazine ad spending. The new look, courtesy of designers Robert Priest and Grace Lee, is set to debut with a November issue (on sale Oct. 1) which is already setting records for ad pages and ad revenue. The magazine also includes new sections on personal wealth and careers.

Priest + Grace's previous magazine design credits include work on Esquire, ESPN The Magazine and InStyle, as well as Conde Nast's slick. but now-defunct new business title Portfolio.

On the circulation front, the magazine is also raising its rate base -- unheard of for business titles in the last few years -- from 315,000 to 355,000. It raised its cover price from $4.95 to $5.99 in May, while the cost of subscriptions increased from $19.95 to$29.95 this past January.

On the business side, former Time Inc. sales exec Laurie Benson has been hired to oversee European ad sales, building this important division with several new hires. (Over 60% of the magazine's readership is outside the U.S.) The magazine also poached Steve Nazaruk from Time Inc.'s Lifestyle Group to serve as its first head of marketing, a newly-created position for Bloomberg Markets.

The last year has seen a series of major acquisitions and partnerships reshape the business publishing world. In October, Bloomberg acquired BusinessWeek as part of a larger strategy to increase exposure of Bloomberg content through more consumer-oriented publications, including a joint newswire and content-sharing arrangement with The Washington Post.

Is It Just Me, Or Is the Wallpaper Moving?

Wallpaper, one of the world's leading design magazines, has teamed up with Dentsu's British division to create a "moving" cover for the October issue, using an interesting analog technology (meaning no LEDs required) called "ombro cinema," according to Ad Age. In this technique, the reader moves a piece of specially shaped acetate delivered along with the magazine over images to reveal animated images. The technique is also being applied to several images alongside editorial content within the magazine.

Seventeen Launches Shopping Promo

Seventeen is launching a shopping promotion targeting teenage consumers, "Seventeen on 34th Street," as a sort of mini-version of Fashion's Night Out, according to Mediaweek. Scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 19, the Seventeen event will feature alcohol-free "mocktails" for the teen fashionistas, celebrity appearances at JCPenney, Macy's and Aeropostale stores, and a giveaway of free concert tickets. The event is tied in with coupons distributed in the stores as well as Seventeen's September issue.

Afar Gets Publisher

Ellen Asmodeo-Giglio has been named as executive vice president and publisher of Afar, an experiential magazine launched roughly a year ago, filling a role that has been vacant since the departure of launch publisher John Sheehy in January. CEO and co-founder Greg Sullivan will continue in the role of editor.