Venture Asia relaunches three titles

<p>Venture Asia Publications has relaunched three of its key titles in </p><p>a bid to freshen their look and take account of changing reader </p><p>habits. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Tourism Asia, aimed at top end consumers in Singapore and Malaysia, has </p><p>been turned into a glossy publication. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Five-year-old trade weekly TravelAsia, which acquired a new look in late </p><p>September, has undergone another dramatic change, featuring a </p><p>hard-hitting news format and fresh columns. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>At the same time, the media rates for the two titles have been slashed </p><p>by 30 per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Venture chief executive officer Vijay Verghese said that he was </p><p>attempting to bring rates to a sensible level. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Rates have to be at a level where the market can support them. </p><p>Otherwise, it's sheer gobbledegook," he said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We have worked backwards from street prices in Asia (for advertising, </p><p>subscriptions and newsstands) and come up with a cost structure that </p><p>offers value products at easy-on-the-pocket prices. It makes a lot more </p><p>sense." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In contrast, however, Holiday Asia's rates will go up by an average six </p><p>per cent, due mainly, according to Mr Verghese, to the fact that </p><p>circulation has increased by 20 per cent, with a readership of more than </p><p>133,000 as determined by PAX 2000. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The editorial focus of the Tourism Asia and TravelAsia has also been </p><p>sharpened to make them more practical to readers. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Because of the Internet and cable television, people's reading habits </p><p>have changed from seekers of general information to seekers of specific </p><p>information, because general information is easily available. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Our new policy tries to address this issue by making the editorial more </p><p>practical and application driven. In the broadest term, we want to help </p><p>our readers make money and save money," Mr Verghese told MEDIA. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Meanwhile, the third title to be relauched is Silkwinds, the inflight </p><p>magazine of SilkAir, which now features a new design and masthead that </p><p>communicates a sense of "maturity, elegance and fun". </p><p><BR><BR> </p>