Associated Media Publishing: An end of an era
Associated Media Publishing (AMP) shocked South Africans with its announcement stating that it would cease trading and publishing from 1 May. Its stable included Cosmopolitan, House and Leisure, Good Housekeeping and Women on Wheels.
“... the unexpected and devastating impact of Covid-19, causing the closure of printing and distribution channels, the global halt on advertising spend as well as the inability to host events for the foreseeable future, have made it impossible to continue trading, despite large amounts of personal funds having gone into AMP,” said CEO of publishing company, Julia Raphaely.
The publication is one of many within the print industry that will be impacted by the current pandemic. At this current moment, many media houses are uncertain about the future, and with no idea of what the future will hold, all they can do is take change as it comes.
“Permanent change has now been forced by lockdowns brought on by Covid-19, with many media houses across the world, and here in South Africa, facing demise,” says Adri Senekal de Wet, contributor at IOL.
“The future of many industries is uncertain. AMP is currently dealing exclusively with trying to minimise the negative financial implications this terrible outcome will cause to creditors and staff,” she said.
AMP was launched in 1982 by Jane Raphaely, who always set an example of how a strong woman can lead a successful business. Her daughter Julia took over as CEO in 2010.
The publishing house has been providing South Africa with magazines for almost 38 years now, which means their entire stable has played a huge role in numerous households around the country. However, the publisher struggled to make ends meet in terms of advertising and other difficulties brought on with the lockdown. Would a move to being wholly digital have been the best move?
“All print media had been moving to digital for some time, but struggled to make it work financially because advertising worked very differently in digital media,” says Anton Harber, professor of journalism at Wits University Caxton.
While the media is facing stress from every direction, there does seem to be hope for online publishers. “While the pandemic is putting huge pressure on newsrooms, journalists and distributors, there is one sphere of the industry that has greatly benefitted from the crisis: online news channels,” says Aisling McCarthy contributor at media update.
It seems that going digital might be the best way to survive during this time, but with one door closing who knows how many new doors will open. Remember, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.