• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, October 30, 2009

Two of America's biggest magazine publishers have suffered new setbacks, as Time Inc. announced plans to cut about $100 million in expenses -- in large part through layoffs -- and Meredith Corp. announced more revenue declines in the third quarter of 2009.

The Time Inc. cutbacks are due to be announced on Wednesday, coinciding with Time Warner's third-quarter earnings announcement, according to The New York Times. Depending on what proportion of the $100-million-expense reduction is achieved through personnel cuts, the plan could involve hundreds of layoffs.

In fall 2008, Time Inc. cut 600 positions, equal to about 6% of its workforce at the time -- generating about $150 million in savings. Using this round of cutbacks as a model, the upcoming round might involve roughly 400 layoffs.

As per the publishing industry, Time Inc. has suffered alarming declines in revenue, reflecting both the loss of ad dollars to the Internet and the broader recession.

In the second quarter of 2009, publishing ad revenues were down 26%, while circulation revenues fell due to decreases in newsstand sales and renewals. This contributed to a 22.2% decline in Time Inc.'s overall revenues, which fell from $1.17 billion to $915 million. Through the end of the second quarter, Time Inc.'s total revenues are down 22.6% to $1.72 billion.

Separately, Meredith's third-quarter results were also broadly negative. Compared to the third quarter of 2008, the company's total revenues in the third quarter of 2009 fell 9%, from $364 million to $332 million. Revenues at Meredith's National Media Group, which includes magazines, fell from $294 million to $272 million -- a 7.5% drop.

There were some positive areas: two Meredith flagship publications, Better Homes and Gardens and Family Circle, posted ad revenue increases of 3% and 13%, respectively. Overall, Meredith's share of total magazine industry ad revenue increased from 8.7% in the third quarter of 2008 to 12.2% this year.

It should be noted that this apparent gain is due largely to the overall decline in ad revenues, rather than growth at Meredith. On the other hand, it also means that in relative terms, Meredith Corp.'s rate of decline is now slower than the rest of the industry.