Quarto Communications renames itself Cottage Life Media Inc.

Quarto Communications has quietly renamed itself Cottage Life Media Inc. to better reflect its increasing multi-media future. The new company name overarches the four print magazines -- Cottage Life, Explore, Canadian Home Workshop and Outdoor Canada -- and associated websites as well as the company's consumer shows.

The renaming is to take advantage of the strong Cottage Life brand, says general manager Terry Sellwood, and to emphasize that the company is into more than print, though that remains very important in terms of revenue and profit. At least for now, the new name has not changed the content or direction of the magazines and websites.

The new name may also be a reflection of the intentions and perspective of Cottage Life Media Inc.'s minority owner, Blue Ant Media, co-founded 18 months ago by Michael MacMillan, the former head of Alliance Atlantis. After a brief quiescent period, MacMillan is once again building a broadcast empire. According to a profile in Marketing magazine, the company wants to be in the business not only of distributing, but also owning, content.

“We want to be in the business of controlling content and of being able to present it to users,” says MacMillan....We want to be relatively indifferent as to how people use what we offer them, whether they do it on a tablet, in a magazine or on a small handheld device or a TV screen.”

Presumably an early example of this combination of owning and presenting is exemplified by Cottage Life TV, a half hour show that debuts April 30 on Travel & Escape Channel -- owned by Blue Ant.

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