CHANGES AFOOT AT SOUTHEAST ASIA GLOBE

EXCLUSIVE: By The Bangkok Bugle

The publishers of Southeast Asia Globe has spoken exclusively to The Bangkok Bugle regarding industry rumours surrounding the future of the Thailand edition of the magazine.
The Cambodia-based English language title launched a Thailand edition in October 2009, and five months on Publishing Director Kirk Bentham admitted things have been a lot tougher than expected.
He said: "The Thailand edition has taken longer than anticipated to hit with the advertisers however, we've made very good impact at retail and with our readership."
Editor in Chief Tassilo Brinzer confirmed that, in March, Southeast Asia Globe will produce a single print edition covering Southeast Asia, as the name of the magazine already implies. The title will feature an additional 10-20 pages and will be distributed through the company's existing networks in Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, as well as Singapore and Malaysia, where distribution agreements are currently under negotiation and should be concluded in the next weeks. He added: “We have done plenty of research during the last months in the marketplaces, and have found that readers and advertisers are more interested in the region than in a single market such as Thailand, where the political situation is often cited as a reason for lower marketing investment, and Cambodia, which alone is considered too small a market for a large regional advertiser.”
For several months the magazine has been published online as a beta version of a regional, multimedia-enabled e-magazine, and Brinzer explained why he sees this as the future for Southeast Asia Globe. “We started work on the e-magazine one year ago, and it is designed for the new generation of e-readers such as the iPad, and others. We are the first publication in Southeast Asia doing this, and certainly we're the first to include video features in a similar-to-print digital magazine within Asia."
He added: "Now, with a structure established in Thailand, we will be following the highly appreciated electronic version in print. All this goes according to a long-term strategy. We have always seen Southeast Asia Globe as a regional publication - and the name clearly implies this. The e-magazine is the model for the print publication which is going to be launched with the March edition which is currently under production.”
Over the past weeks The Bangkok Bugle has been contacted by several sources who were suggesting the magazine was close to collapse. One suggested the magazine was suffering severe financial problems while another pointed to recent staff lay-offs.
Brinzer responded, saying: “The rumours may have resulted from very tight financial management, but are certainly not from a looming closure. We have invested more than US$15,000 alone in the digital venture, and we are prepared to do more if necessary. Working on a tight budget is pretty reasonable for a start-up, isn't it?”.
With advertising, and the associated revenues still extremely hard to generate in Thailand, Brinzer and his team face some tough challenges. He added: “At this stage, online advertising is merely an add-on for print advertisements, and this will be the case with adverts in the e-magazine initially. However I am positive that, as we move along with this combination of print and online publication, we will be able to generate additional revenues.”
Brinzer added that revenues will also come from subscription sales of the e-magazine and its archive, which allows for global distribution to readers interested in south east Asia. "There is no regional magazine. This is where we always saw our market, and we are confident that we will reach the next level," be added. He pointed out that publishers all over the world have rushed to produce e-magazines for electronic reading devices, and added: "We started this process a long time ago, and are confident that this type of publication will allow publishers to be more independent from advertising revenue - if their product is good".
He added however, that the print edition with a higher print-run and wider distribution remains the backbone of the venture. With the regional launch of the 'combined' Southeast Asia Globe looming next month, Brinzer admitted that Cambodia is an unlikely place to launch a regional magazine. He said: "We will be using Bangkok for the launch of the regional edition, and this is why we invested in the Thailand venture in the first place. We have a great team on board, although we are currently looking for a regional sales manager to strengthen sales on a higher level. Yes, we've swapped some staff that has not proven to be suitable. I believe it's the usual start-up issues; we had them in Cambodia and now in Thailand. But we are looking at the bigger picture."
Brinzer concluded, saying: "The product is good and sincere, and the region is integrating fast - providing us with a huge market interested in it.” And Bentham agreed. He said: "The quality of the magazine has continued to improve, and we've been doing very well attracting subscribers for both the print and e-magazine editions. With the improved quality and branding of the Cambodia edition, we've also seen dramatic increases in both retail and advertising."