ANALYSIS: Can Next be the foreign magazine that breaks Taiwan? - Next believes its paparazzi approach will be a hit with readers

<p>The signs are promising that Jimmy Lai's first venture in Taiwan </p><p>may be spared the fate which has befallen so many foreign titles that </p><p>have tried to land in the country. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The market, which has buried a host of foreign titles, has allocated a </p><p>special place in Taipei's newsstands and convenience stores for the Hong </p><p>Kong media tycoon's Next magazine. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Sales clerks have given it pride of place, stacking it next to the cash </p><p>register. Part of the reason is due to its size. Next is too small to </p><p>sit in the racks with its like-themed competitors - gossip veterans such </p><p>as China Times Weekly, TVBS Weekly, Scoop and Dujya Baodao. But the </p><p>sensationalist Next is also too outre to fit either among the like-sized </p><p>but mainstream titles such as Cita Bella, Nong Nong and GQ Taiwan. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>For now, its place near the cash register is assured, considering that </p><p>the May 31 launch issue reportedly sold all 275,000 copies in eight </p><p>hours, making it Taiwan's largest-circulating magazine. That roughly </p><p>equalled the combined circulation of its main rivals, China Times </p><p>Weekly, TVBS Weekly and Scoop. None are audited, but each is believed to </p><p>sell between 80,000 and 100,000 copies. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>By any measure, it was a stunning launch, but what fuelled it? More </p><p>importantly, can Next sustain sales, even reach ad targets, at a time </p><p>when the Taiwanese economy has hit a rough patch? Next editor-in-chief </p><p>Peir Woei pins its launch success squarely on its content. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The launch issue had Taiwan's first family on its cover, with much of </p><p>the attention focused on President Chen Shuibian's daughter. "We wrote </p><p>about her feelings, her past romances, and we profiled her current </p><p>boyfriend by interviewing his former girlfriends." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Another example? The story about United Bamboo, a triad </p><p>organisation. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Usually the triads are reported second-hand, but we sent reporters to </p><p>their meeting." The photo spread bears this out. Perplexed yet </p><p>malevolent faces glare at the camera. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Such fare would be watered-down whisky by Western tabloid standards. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Yet this is heady paparazzi stuff in Taipei, where the press is usually </p><p>deferential when it comes to society's high and mighty. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Its racy approach is potentially Next's key strength in attracting </p><p>readers, but there's a danger it could have the opposite effect on </p><p>advertisers. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>As media went to press, it emerged that the Taiwan Advertisers' </p><p>Association had circulated a memo advising its members not to advertise </p><p>in Next. The memo cites the magazine's tabloid approach and the </p><p>potential privacy threat it poses. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The view that Next's controversial approach could be counter-productive </p><p>when it comes to attracting advertisers was backed up by K F Lee, chief </p><p>executive officer of Carat United Media Services Taiwan: "Here the media </p><p>are very friendly to big corporations, but Next is saying it doesn't </p><p>care who has placed ads," he says. "It could be risky for them." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Next's sales director, Wilson Chou, confirmed that a number of </p><p>advertisers had also taken a wait-and-see approach. Next had targetted </p><p>100 ad pages for the launch, but only managed 83. Its pages boasted </p><p>quality advertisers - Apple Computer, Nokia, Aetna Insurance, Mercedes </p><p>Benz, Ralph Lauren, and SK-II. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>New titles in Taiwan frequently give space away for free, especially </p><p>given the wobbly state of the economy. George Shen, managing director of </p><p>CIA, says: "Offering free space is a common practice here for new </p><p>media. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The cable TV channels, TVBS and JET, gave spots to premium advertisers </p><p>for free when they started up. That practice lasted half a year." Chou, </p><p>however, insisted that no free ads were given away. He said the company </p><p>had developed several packages such as a half-year nine-plus-six </p><p>package, in which advertisers receive six free ads for nine paid, but </p><p>have to sign a contract and pay. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Another obstacle Next faced was pricing. It was entering the market as </p><p>an unknown with a megalomaniac circulation goal. Chou's solution was to </p><p>lower costs. "We couldn't guarantee any numbers, so we priced at 1.2 </p><p>times the cost of a page in China Times, and that is cheap considering </p><p>that our circulation is so much larger." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Next is now aiming to repeat the success it achieved with its launch </p><p>issue each week. In fact, those are the direct orders of NextMedia </p><p>publisher Andrew Chow, who oversees the parent title in Hong Kong as </p><p>well as its Taiwan offspring. His first year goal for Taiwan is a </p><p>circulation of 250,000 to 300,000 copies, including 100,000 in </p><p>subscription sales. He also expects ad revenue of NTdollars 500 to </p><p>dollars 600 million (USdollars 14.5 to dollars 17.4 million). The </p><p>numbers work out just about right, when compared to the NTdollars 1.8 </p><p>billion in advertising - 20 per cent of the island's NTdollars 7.9 </p><p>billion magazine market - currently commanded by Next's gossip </p><p>rivals. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Taiwan is a graveyard of foreign titles that have come and gone. And </p><p>it's not the best of times to launch a magazine. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Next's success may have been fuelled more by curiosity in Jimmy Lai's </p><p>latest venture and by the inspired advertising campaign by Saatchi & </p><p>Saatchi (media, June 8) than by the magazine itself. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The real issue will be whether Next still enjoys pride of place in </p><p>stores six months from now, or whether it eventually finds itself </p><p>relegated to the low-traffic shelves. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>