View across the border
Oliver Classen on potential publishing partnerships in the area of ancillary businesses.
Oliver Classen on possible publishing cooperations in the ancillary business sector.Now that Ringier has finally broken the Swiss spell, it seems only a matter of months, perhaps even weeks, before the competition jumps on the ancillary business bandwagon. North of the Rhine, the battle for shares in the ancillary business with books, CDs and DVDs is already in full swing: Holtzbrinck's flagship Die Zeit is countering the "Cinemathek" of the Süddeutsche Zeitung (see page 16) with a 50-part film collection that is also distributed via amazon.de. And Stern is trying its luck with twelve Oscar-winning DVDs on its own.In contrast to the German market, the German market simply has the necessary size for lucrative side businesses: This is how Swiss publishing managers have justified their lack of imagination and courage in this regard up to now. The surprise success of the Blick experiment, which can certainly be optimized in terms of quality, exposes this killer argument as a mere protective claim. Where there is an entrepreneurial will, there is also a viable path.
This is preferably done with the help of valid partners. This does not just mean production and sales alliances. It would also be conceivable to extend existing alliances, such as advertising pools, to commercial sidelines. Why not distribute the same gadget via Tages-Anzeiger, Basler Zeitung and Berner Zeitung? Or why not team up with one of the major German publishers mentioned above?
whose book and film series could be marketed just as well in German-speaking Switzerland?
Because the following applies to this area: Only the masses make the difference. From which it follows: The smaller the market, the more expensive the product. That's why the rock CDs from the industry pioneer Blick are still far too expensive at 8.10 Swiss francs net. The fact that they nevertheless sell like hot cakes gives an idea of the Swiss potential for higher-quality newspaper supplements. The only question is who will be the first to smell a rat and serve their readers a menu worthy of their own brand.
> Oliver Classen, Editor
This is preferably done with the help of valid partners. This does not just mean production and sales alliances. It would also be conceivable to extend existing alliances, such as advertising pools, to commercial sidelines. Why not distribute the same gadget via Tages-Anzeiger, Basler Zeitung and Berner Zeitung? Or why not team up with one of the major German publishers mentioned above?
whose book and film series could be marketed just as well in German-speaking Switzerland?
Because the following applies to this area: Only the masses make the difference. From which it follows: The smaller the market, the more expensive the product. That's why the rock CDs from the industry pioneer Blick are still far too expensive at 8.10 Swiss francs net. The fact that they nevertheless sell like hot cakes gives an idea of the Swiss potential for higher-quality newspaper supplements. The only question is who will be the first to smell a rat and serve their readers a menu worthy of their own brand.
> Oliver Classen, Editor
