Bauer Media Assessment

Bauer Media Group

Is stationed in Hamburg, Germany, which operates in 16 countries worldwide. Since the company was founded in 1875 The Bauer Family has privately owned it. It was formally known as Heinrich Bauer Verlag KG, abbreviated to HBV and usually shortened to H.Bauer. The company has been managed by 4 generations of the Bauer family it started as a small printing house. Bauer Media uses some eco friendly products but is not seen as a top eco-friendly company.

• There magazine heritage stretches back to 1953 with the launch of Angling Times and the acquisition in 1956 of Motor Cycle News, both still iconic brands in this day.

• The radio business started for them in 1990 with the acquisition of London dance station Kiss FM (now called Kiss 100), followed by the acquisition of Liverpool's Radio City and later by TWC and the Metro Group. Then came the acquisition of Melody FM, which was transformed, into Magic 105.4.

• In 1994, the company bought a small magazine called For Him Magazine, which is now the core of the best-selling international multi-platform brand FHM.

• In 1996, they acquired digital music TV channel The Box, as a route into the small screen business, which has grown into Box Television, a seven-channel joint venture TV business with Channel 4.

• Continuing its history of magazine launches, Closer was launched in 2002 and Britain’s first weekly glossy, GRAZIA, was launched in 2005.

• Bauer Media Group’s magazine titles sell about 38million magazines a week worldwide.  The companies publish 300 magazines worldwide to 15 countries aswell as TV and Radio stations. Bauer first started its global selling by launching Bella magazine to the UK in 1987; it also became Britain’s

• 3rd largest publisher at the time. Its further expenditure of UK seen the company purchase Emap consumer media and Emap radio in 2008 to become UK’s biggest publishing group. On the 29th January 2008 Emap PLC completely sold their company to Bauer media group for £1.14bn. Then in march 2012 it renamed itself to Top Right Group.

“The media company behind some of the UK's best-known magazines has bought Absolute Radio in a deal reported to be worth up to £25m.”

(BBC) This is one of Bauer media’s biggest investments into the radio industry. Aswell as owning many stations, they recent buying of Absolute Radio means that they can open up to a bigger audience around the world. 

The companies currently have employed 6,400 people for all platforms that they have a product on. Bauer Media is a sister company of H Bauer Publishing, publisher of the UK's biggest TV listings, Take a Break and Bella.

Bauer media’s wide variety of magazines allows them to reach out to a variety of audiences with certain magazines being popular with ages such as: Kerrang-, which is aimed at teenagers with a taste to rock music. Take A Break: aimed at middle age women and men that like to do puzzles and read stories about other people. 

Revenue / Turnover €2.129 Billion Euro (2010) (£1.77819 Billion GBP)  

TV Online Radio Magazine Name of Mag

Yes Yes Yes Yes             FHM

No Yes Yes Yes Heat

Yes Yes Yes Yes Kerrang

No Yes Yes Yes Kiss 100

No Yes Yes Yes Magic

No Yes Yes Yes Mojo

Yes Yes Yes Yes Q

No Yes Yes Yes Smash Hits

Bauer also hold the best-selling magazines for certain categories:

Motorcycling

MCN - 94,941 readers 

MOTORING

Car – 54,486 readers

MUSIC MARKET

Kerrang! – 38,556 readers

MOJO – 83,676 readers

Q – 61,485 readers 

FILM

Empire– 167,748 readers 

WOMEN'S LIFESTYLE

Grazia – 186,493 readers 

Yours – 272,040 readers

CELEBRITY WEEKLIES

Closer – 396,014 readers

Heat – 261,715 readers

(Information found on http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/press/news/article/latest-abc-figures) 

“Bauer Media is to cease publication of the controversial magazine, Der Landser, which has been accused of honoring pro-Nazi troops who fought in the Second World War.” (The Guardian) The magazine has been published for 43 years before now making it a long lasting magazine, which sold millions of copies per magazine.  The magazine contained honoring of 24 SS-Waffen members that participated in wartime crimes. The magazine has had several complaints from readers all addressing that it supported pro-Nazi troops who fought in WW2. The British Communications Regulator has also complained the magazine. Along with this Abraham Foxman director of the US Anti-Defamation League also contacted them about another Nazi publication of one of their magazines in February this year. 

Bauer Access has launched a series of “open access” sessions between Bauer media’s editors, programmers, advertisers and agencies. Bauer media has worked on bespoke cross media campaigns for clients such as Russian standard Vodka, Orange, Barclaycard and Sony Ericsson. An example of this link up would be Barclaycard linked up with leading magazine Q; this helped as Barclaycard are the headline sponsor for the Mercury Prize. 

They also let smaller companies partner with some of there major brands to help out smaller company’s but there only doing it for money that they get of the partnered company.