Small- and mid-sized mags have until Sept. 17 to apply for CPF Business Innovation funding

Small and mid-sized print and digital magazine publishers have until September 17 to put in their applications to be eligible for the current round (2010-11) of the Business Innovation component of the Canada Periodical Fund from the department of Canadian Heritage. Applications received later will not be considered until the 2011-12 round. 

The business innovation program offers support for projects that innovate in adapting to changing market conditions and contribute to diversity of content.

A portion of the funding for this component has been reserved for digital periodicals. And priority will be given to arts and literary periodicals that were awarded a grant by the Canada Council in 2009-10. (In effect,this may soften the blow for small cultural publications who were denied access to the Aid to Publishers component because they had fewer than 5,000 paid copies annually.) The program for print periodicals is restricted to publications with 50% paid or verified requested circulation and no less than 250 and no more than 45,000 average circulation.

There is an extensive applicant's guide online. Among the general project requirements:

• Projects are considered innovative if they explore new technologies or business models;
• They must be well-researched and clearly demonstrate realistic objectives and measurable outcomes, supported by a business plan or market research;
• Projects must demonstrate that they will increase circulation, advertising or other revenue and thereby support the growth and sustainability of the publishing firm;
• The maximum government contribution is $25,000 ($10,000 for a business plan, $15,000 for a marketing plan) and represent 75% of the project's costs; the rest may be made up of in-kind or cash contributions, including pro-rated salary of individual(s) working directly on the project