Mag industry tries to head off Canada Post 's abandonment of the postal subsidy

In what may be a last-ditch attempt to drive home to Ottawa and the Harper government the importance of postal assistance to the Canadian magazine industry, Magazines Canada is embarking on a ramped-up lobbying campaign over the next few weeks, including press briefings, an appearance before the Commons finance committee in Halifax on October 24, an e-mail blitz to MPs and an ad in the Hill Times.

The catalyst for this activity is the imminent end of Canada Post's longstanding support and involvement in the Publications Assistance Program (PAP). Starting April 1, the ending of this "distribution partnership", as Magazines Canada characterizes it, will have a major impact on getting Canadian magazines into Canadian hands, particularly in rural areas. Canada Post intends to withdraw its last $15 million of support for PAP, effectively ending its involvement in a program that has been around for a century, created to promote literacy and the equalization of delivery costs.

"The $15 million gap will mean that postage costs for the average magazine will jump by 31 percent and will drastically alter the way that magazines are delivered to Canadians." Magazines Canada says in a release issued today. "The steep and sudden increase in distribution costs is not viable for many publishers, putting at risk the choice and amount of Canadian magazines available to readers.

What the industry wants is for Canada Post's partnership to be maintained (and for the Harper government to apply pressure to that effect) until there has been a review of Canada's magazine policy, particularly the impact on small- and medium-sized titles, which produce more than two-thirds of Canada's consumer magazines.

"In our view, allowing cuts to a highly successful magazine program without first considering the consequences for the health of Canadian culture, is short-sighted," said Mark Jamison, chief executive officer, Magazines Canada.

“The magazine industry is already looking at alternative delivery solutions in response to the Canada Post decision, however we can’t change 100 years of magazine distribution infrastructure overnight,” adds Jamison.

(A working group of consumer magazine company executives have been studying the matter and conducting a test of to-the-door magazine delivery using contractors who now deliver national newspapers.)

“Before allowing drastic cuts, we collectively ought to be looking at how we can do things differently and how we can best ensure that rural Canadians and others are able to access Canadian information, stories and ideas," he said. "This is especially true in rural areas where postal costs for magazine delivery could be prohibitive without Canada Post delivery.”