• by Erik Sass , February 1, 2006

At a symposium dominated by talk of how a digital revolution is transforming the publishing industry, a top information industry executives, Joe Mansueto, CEO of Morningstar, said he was increasing his investments in good old paper and ink based publications with the acquisition of Inc. and Fast Company last year.

Responding to an audience question during Tuesday's session of the Software and Information Industry Association conference in New York, Mansueto said his purchases were based on his general fondness for magazines, his conviction of their continued relevance, and the low prices of both magazines at a time when the Internet had undoubtedly delivered a pummeling. Overall, Mansueto's decision sounded like the move of a businessman rather than a dilettante--encouraging news for the viability of "old media" at a time when many are sounding its death knell.

"There's just something I find very compelling about high-quality journalism with good design, all in this one tangible magazine," Mansueto explained, referring explicitly to the physical dimension of print. Of course, as an online entrepreneur, Mansueto cautioned that print magazines can no longer stand alone: "To be successful in the magazine business today, you need to be much more than a magazine. It needs to be a platform [with] Web sites [and] all these ancillary businesses."

On that note, Mansueto delivered a tempered evaluation of the print editions of Inc. and Fast Company's first year under new management, conceding that he was "still getting to know the business." "The Web sites are growing like gangbusters, [but] the magazines are flat, growing slightly," Mansueto said--raising the question: an Internet entrepreneur might be able to grow an Internet business, but can he save a magazine?

"Long term I'm optimistic," Mansueto concluded with quiet confidence. "They're both very strong brands."