NEW LAUNCH: WOMEN'S HEALTH THAILAND

The May edition of Women's Health Thailand

Women's Health Thailand magazine became the latest Thai language licensed edition of an overseas magazine when it launched here last month.

Published from the U.S. by Rodale, the local language edition is published by Media Transasia who, in October 2006, launched the Thai language edition of companion title Men's Health.

The publisher, in its press release, said the magazine would benefit from an initial print run of 120,000 copies. In an interview with The Nation it also expressed its aim to attract 20,000 subscribers in the first year.

Despite my personal skepticism that the magazine will achieve this lofty goal, it does benefit from one of the most attractive subscription offers I've seen from a Thai magazine. A one-year subscription is available for 600 baht with a free branded gym bag worth 350 baht. Kudos to the publishers for creating an attractive subscription offer, although achieving 20,000 inside a year will be next to impossible. That would mean attracting more subscribers than the Bangkok Post and likely the second-best subscribed magazine in Thailand behind Reader's Digest Thailand.