AFI BLOG: Media and Technology

Advertising Age

Signals a Change in Publisher’s Business Model

In an expansion of its ambitions, Bauer Publishing has introduced its first website, a teen humor site called 4TNZ.com, intended to be a destination for consumers and advertisers.

Until now the company has subsisted almost entirely on its magazines’ newsstand sales, especially the celebrity weeklies In Touch and Life & Style. The company’s European model (inherited from its German owners) treated advertising as secondary and robust companion sites as likely cannibals. But by creating an ad-supported destination online, Bauer is signaling a broadening business model.

“Bauer has proven themselves in the magazine arena,” said Ian Scott, president of Bauer Advertising Sales. “We start with something that we think is a great concept that is going to appeal to an audience.”

“This is a testament to the fact that over the years we’ve invested heavily in building a top-quality ad sales department at Bauer,” he added, “and we feel confident that we can launch products that can be completely supported by advertising.”

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