Future kills 20 magazines
By John Gaudiosi
FEB. 20 | Future Network, the U.K.-based publisher that owns U.S.-based Imagine Media, has closed 20 magazines (six in the U.S., six in the U.K. and eight in France and Germany) and five Web sites. More than 17 percent of its work force, 350 employees, were laid off.
The U.S. magazines closed include Total Movie, T3, Digital Foto, Revolution, Dreamcast and Maximum Linux. The company has retained an investment bank to consider a sale of Business 2.0.
Because of an advertising slowdown and a lull in the videogame market, other Future Network magazines such as the Official UK Playstation 2 Magazine have been hurt. The company's shares have also taken a hit, losing 80% of their value since FN announced in November that it would not meet earning expectations.
Although experts expect the lull in the videogame marketplace to improve as more PlayStation 2s enter the marketplace and Nintendo's Game Boy Advance launches in June, the videogame publishing industry recently saw the closure of CNET's Gamecenter.com and privately held Gamers.com. Other casualties include Games Business magazine.
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