The courage to change...and BOAR auto plan wins in DC!!

Kudos to the management team at Newsweek magazine for awakening to the realities of magazine publishing in 2009 and then actually doing something about it.



These execs didn't just bite the bullet. They swallowed the whole rifle! Effective this summer, guaranteed circulation of the title is cut 700K with a further cut of 300+K planned for 2010. This is change we can believe in.



The business models for mass circulation magazines have been broken for a long time. Selling subscriptions at prices that don't even cover the cost of sales, let alone provide a financial contribution. Inflating circulation to achieve a payoff in ad revenue. This all worked when the good times rolled. No longer. Look for more magazines to follow Newsweek's lead. It's a huge bet the company type risk but so many magazines are at the inflection point where a little bit of this and a little bit of that just won't do.



A provision in the Congressional economic recovery bill escaped my attention until today. The Senate approved a federal tax deduction for state sales taxes on auto sales. Perhaps not as straightforward as the BobOnARoll plan, but it's the right idea, and elegantly executed.



Beautiful spring-like day in NYC today. Yes, Virginia, there is hope......