Extreme makeover at U.S. TV Guide seems to be working

The decision by TV Guide in the U.S. to not follow the Canadian TV Guide lead and dump print in favour of online, seems to have paid off. A story in MediaDaily News says that, after 15 consecutive quarters of losses, the wholly revamped magazine returned to profitability during the first quarter.

"I don't think anybody has ever done this before," publisher Scott Crystal boasted of the magazine's extreme makeover. "I can't think of any magazine that has scrapped the core product and rolled out an entirely new one, with a completely new editorial form and a different audience profile."

The magazine switched format, from a digest to a full-sized magazine, switched content from primarily listings to a gossipy celebrity approach, and switched audiences by concentrating on a slimmed down rate base (3.2 million from 9 million) focussed almost entirely on young women.

Building on a small base at first, the story said, ad pages continue to grow by double digits almost three years later. In 2007, they rose 23% to 1,138, and in the first quarter of 2008 they grew 10.9% to 281.

The good news release may well be part of a "tune-up" of the print title in order to sell it.