The number of magazines launched over the last two years increased from 185 new titles in 2013 to 190 new titles in 2014, according to MediaFinder.com, which maintains a database of
periodical publications. However, over the same period the number of magazines that ceased publication also increased, from 56 last year to 99 this year.
A total of 47 new business-to-business
titles launched in 2014, compared to 20 new titles in 2013, while 27 B2B titles ceased publication in 2014, up from 14 titles closed in 2013.
Notable consumer magazine launches in 2014 included
Town & Country Travel, California Sunday Magazine, CNET magazine, and Eat This, Not That! The list of magazines that ceased publication includes Vibe, Diabetic Cooking, Macworld,
newspaper-distributed title USA Weekend, and a number of niche automotive publications owned by Source Interlink, including titles like Popular Hot Rodding and Rod &
Custom.
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Two historic magazines also cut their print publication schedules drastically in 2014: Johnson Publishing’s Jet, which folded its print magazine, but continues to
publish an annual special print edition, and Meredith Corp.’s Ladies’ Home Journal, which dropped its monthly schedule and home delivery for subscribers to become a quarterly
newsstand-only special interest publication.
The figures for closures listed above are down sharply from the depths of the recession: according to MediaFinder.com a total of 433 magazines folded
in 2009, while 526 folded in 2008.
Despite this, it became harder to judge the overall health of the magazine industry in September of this year, following the decision by the MPA –The
Association of Magazine Media and the Publisher’s Information Bureau to no longer publicize figures for print ad pages. Elsewhere in the print universe, the Newspaper Association of America
stopped reporting revenue figures for U.S. newspapers in 2013.