EVALUATION ACTIVITY 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Throughout this project I have been looking at, for reference, five music magazines: Mojo, Q, Uncut, NME and Kerrang! In all five of these magazines I have been makingreference to, there are two companies which in turn distribute them. The two companies responsible for distributing these magazines are; 'Bauer media group' and 'IPC Media. After referring to these magazines I have decided to choose as my magazine distributor, the company 'Bauer media'. This two companies have had a very positive impacts on their magazines.

Bauer Media Group

Bauer Media Group

This is a large German publishing company based in Hamburg, which operates in 15 countries worldwide. Since the company was founded in 1875, it has been privately-owned and under management by the Bauer family.

Bauer Media’s portfolio of influential media brands includes many of the best known magazines in the UK, which deliver excellent content to our audiences whenever, however and wherever they want. This provides an excellent platform for any business to reachtheir target audience through an effective magazine advertising campaign.

The magazines Mojo, Q, Empire and Kerrang are all products of The Bauer Media Group. These are the 4 main magazines I am in competition with, as my magazine is also male orientated as a mens entertainment magazine. Over the past 20 years, the music magazine industry has had a vast proliferation of magazine titles. Magazines are in competition with other magazines struggling and fighting to gain customers and buyers. What a smart music magazine would want to do is try and work in a niche market. A niche market is the subset of the market on which a specific product is focusing; therefore the market niche defines the specific product features aimed at satisfying specific market needs, as well as the price range, production quality and the demographics that is intended to impact.

I believe that Bauer Media group is the right institution for my magazine as at the moment, the 3 music magazines in the Bauer Group mainly focus on older buyers. The buyers of the magazines such as Q, are usually around the age of 24- 30 onwards. This is because many of the magazine front cover artists usually appeal to a more older audience. For example; in this issue of Q, Madonna is the front cover attraction. Madonna wouldn't usually appeal to a younger audience.

My magazine on the other hand, appeals to a more younger age group making it fit perfectly in the Bauer media group. My magazine unlike the other magazines Bauer produce, allow me to reach a more broader society. Also, all three magazines are very successful within the magazine industry. I feel that using Bauer Media Group, my magazine can also be very successful.