MoneySense online magazine sold to Ratehub Inc.

Rogers Communications Inc. has sold its MoneySense online-only magazine to Toronto-based Ratehub Inc. The deal is to close December 1. As a story in the Globe and Mail points out, this is the first (and only) one of eight magazines put up for sale  in the summer as a package including the company's custom content group. Rogers apparently had an understanding to sell seven titles (save for MoneySense) to the publisher of The Hockey News, but that deal collapsed a few weeks ago. 

Rogers will continue to produce MoneySense content, sell advertising and operate the website until the end of January in order to assist with the transition. Most of the content on the site is created by freelancers; no Rogers employees are moving as part of the acquisition.

Ratehub makes most of its money from affiliate marketing, but MoneySense is expected to continue to rely on standard online advertising to a great extent.  

Mag world view: Glamour gives up regular print; Sat Eve Post puts 200 year archive online

• Glamour to Cease Regular Print Run (Folio:)
• Saturday Evening Post Puts Its Nearly 200-Year Archive Online (Folio:)
• If you hate the media, you’re more likely to be fooled by a fake headline (Nieman Journalism Lab)
• Buzzfeed boss open to merging with rival online news publishers to negotiate better deal with Duopoly (Press Gazette)
• Good Housekeeping Expands Sustainability Efforts With New Awards  (Folio:)
• Facebook failed to stop a child bride being auctioned on its platform (TechCrunch)
• LinkedIn cuts off email address exports with new privacy setting (TechCrunch) 
• Selling Native Advertising? Here’s What You Should Know (Folio:)

A\J changing its tagline

In a subtle branding shift, A\J Alternatives Journal is changing its tagline in 2019 from what it had been "Canada's environmental voice" to “A Home for Canada’s Environmental Voices.

” We know that no single media outlet, environmental science department, eNGO or corporate player acting alone can tackle the intractable problems facing the natural world in Canada and beyond, [says editor in chief Andrew Reeves in a note to subscribers and supporters.]

"That’s why, as A\J approaches its 50th anniversary in 2021, we believe it’s time to rethink how we’re acting in support of Canada’s environment.

"And, more importantly, who we’re acting alongside. That’s why we here at A\J have decided to do our part to strengthen Canada’s environment by transitioning from our old mantra as “Canada’s environmental voice” to a role more befitting our founding mandate to make complex ecological issues understandable."

Mag world view:Breaking China's fashion; Tracking guys; Guardian model pays off; 17 cuts frequency; New York to paywall itself

• Cracks Appear in China's Fashion Magazine Landscape (The Business of Fashion)
• A bot now tells Financial Times reporters if they’re only quoting men (Nieman Lab)
• Katharine Viner: 'The Guardian's reader funding model is working. It's inspiring' (Guardian )
• Seventeen Magazine Eliminating Frequency After 74 Years in Print (Folio:)
• New York magazine to adopt paywall by end of November (Guardian)
• Is ‘screen fatigue’ really a turn-up for the books? (FIPP)

First Time, now Fortune sold off

Meredith Corporation has sold Fortune magazine for $150 million in cash in a deal that will close by year end. The sale comes just a week after that of Time magazine for $190 million in cash.  These two major titles were part of the acquisition of Time Inc. by Meredith earlier this year and the sell-off two other important titles, Sports Illustrated and Money, are expected imminently.  Meredith has said that it was in particular unloading four titles titles didn’t align with Meredith’s core audience of American women.

Chatchaval Jiaravanon, Thai business tycooon and owner of Fortune Media Group Holdings Limited of Bangkok bought Fortune as a personal private investment; according to a story in Media Post, he intends to grow the brand's digital capabilities, geographic expansion and editorial team.  

“Our vision is to establish Fortune as the world’s leading business media brand, with an always-on reach and global relevance:” Jiarovenon stated. He believes “the demand for high-quality business information is growing,” which will lead to profitable growth for both the publication and its events branch.  

Tech billionaire Marc Benioff and his wife Lynn Benioff bought Time. 

Toronto Life special edition features city's 100 Best Restaurants

Toronto Life has revealed its list of the City’s 100 Best Restaurants. The list will be featured in The City’s 100 Best Restaurants special edition, which is on newsstands today (November 6). Subscribers will receive the issue in addition to their regular monthly copies.

Toronto Life's no. 1

"At the top of the list is chef Patrick Kriss’ Alo, located at Queen and Spadina [said the magazine in a release.]. "The fine-dining restaurant, now three years old, seems to be improving with age: it’s home to one of the most singular restaurant experiences in this city, or any other." 

“There’s so much depth in Toronto’s restaurant scene right now that choosing only 100 was a real challenge,” said Alex Baldinger, Food Editor of Toronto Life. “But when it came to naming the No. 1 restaurant, our assessment was unanimous. Alo is thoroughly deserving, and consistently exceptional.”

The top 10 are

1.  Alo (163 Spadina Ave., Toronto)
2.  Edulis (169 Niagara St., Toronto)
3.  Sushi Kaji (860 The Queensway, Toronto)
4.  Actinolite (971 Ossington Ave., Toronto)
5.  Jacobs and Co. (12 Brant St., Toronto)
6.  Buca Yorkville (53 Scollard St., Toronto)
7.  La Banane (227 Ossington Ave., Toronto)
8.  Brothers Food and Wine (1240 Bay St., Toronto)
9.  Canoe (66 Wellington St. W., Toronto)
10.  Quetzal (419 College St., Toronto)

[The full list is available online at torontolife.com/TL100.]

In addition to the top 100 Restaurant list, the special issue also includes rankings of the city’s 30 best bars, 10 amazing out-of-town restaurants and 120 excellent wines.