1 September 2000
Strong launch beats advertising revenue targets
Business 2.0 magazine has launched successfully in Germany with advertising revenues running ahead of initial expectations The Future Network plc (FNET:LSE) announced today. The multi-platform brand devoted to business in the Internet age, extended its international reach this week when Future Verlag, the German arm of The Future Network, launched the German print and online version into the European market place.
The 168 page first issue had an initial print run of 170,000 copies and features a variety of Internet, technology, financial and lifestyle brand advertisers. Post-launch guaranteed circulation for advertisers is 40,000. The launch is fuelled by the spectacular success of the brand in the US, where it has been published since 1998, and also by its successful launch in the UK in May this year.
Future Verlag’s Managing Director Stefan Moosleitner says:
“Germany is clearly a most important market for the Business 2.0 brand as there’s a huge demand for business titles here. The magazine has an award-winning formula which is set for success here, the most advanced Internet economy in Europe (1). Initial feedback from readers is extremely positive and issue one is well ahead of it advertising budget. Forward ad bookings look extremely promising, not only from the financial and technology sectors, but also from major consumer brands such as Audi and Tissot. Overall we seem to have hit a sweet spot with the German Business 2.0 launch and it should pave the way for the other European launches to come.”
Heading up the editorial team for Business 2.0 Germany is editor-in-chief and veteran business writer Uli Pecher. Prior to joining Future Uli was based in California where he experienced the first wave of the Internet revolution and reported for heavyweight German titles, Focus, Stern, Handelsblatt and Wirtschaftswoche. Backing up Uli is a highly skilled team of ten writers with expertise in key areas such as technology, e-business and marketing.
Commenting on the launch, Greg Ingham, Chief Executive of The Future Network says:
“Germany is the largest market for Business 2.0 outside of the US and I’m delighted that this launch, which is a key part of our global Business 2.0 strategy, has had such an encouraging start. Globalisation of business is a major part of this New Economy. This strong launch in Germany, which comes just three months after the successful launch of the brand in the UK, is further proof that we can leverage the enormous success the brand has enjoyed in the US over the past two years.”
Future now publishes Business 2.0 in the US, UK and Germany and will launch an Italian edition in October. Licensed versions are also available in South Africa, Israel, South Korea and South America. In May the US edition doubled its frequency to fortnightly.
(1) With 14.4 million online households Germany has the largest online population in Europe. Source: Jupiter Communications 2000
For more information:
The Future Network 01225 442244
Greg Ingham, Chief Executive
Terri Davey, Communications Manager
Hogarth Partnership 0207 357 9477
James Longfield/Harriet Keen <
b>About Business 2.0
Business 2.0 is an award-winning, multi-platform brand including print, online, conferences and television. Based on the knowledge that the Internet is changing the rules of business, the magazine is aimed at [[Transformers” – people with the power, influence, and insight to re-invent their companies for the New Economy. Through in-depth, analytical reporting, Business 2.0 provides the ideas and information these individuals need to succeed in the Internet Age.
About The Future Network Plc
Future Publishing is part of The Future Network plc which was founded in the UK in 1985. Today it publishes over 127 magazines worldwide and has extensive online activities attracting the attention of 4.9 million unique visitors and generating over 83 million page views per month. It is the world’s fastest growing major publisher; the leading publisher of video games and home computing magazines in the UK, France, Italy, Poland and the US; and ranks as the sixth largest magazine publisher in the UK. Future employs over 1,700 people in offices in Bath, London, San Francisco, New York, Paris, Milan, Munich, Rotterdam and Wroclaw. Future was floated on the London Stock Exchange in June 1999 and has a current market capitalisation of over £1.1 billion.
