This document discusses potential publishing companies and distribution strategies for an alternative music magazine called Interzone. It considers two main options for a publisher: Bauer Media Group, a large international company that publishes magazines like Q and Kerrang, and Volcano Publishing, a smaller UK-based company that publishes the magazine Artrocker. While a smaller publisher like Volcano would allow the magazine to fully focus on the alternative genre, the document concludes that Bauer would be better as it could help the magazine reach a larger audience and fill a gap in the alternative music market. The document also discusses establishing an online presence through websites and social media, as well as developing apps to allow digital downloads of the magazine.

1. Q3.What kind of media institution
might distribute your media product and
why?
Nicole Harman-Smith

2. Publishing Companies
There are a number of publishing companies which successfully publish
popular alternative music magazines. I will be researching the publishers
of current and popular music magazines which relate and is best suited
to the music magazine that I have created. The two main music
magazines which I have continuously referred to throughout my
coursework is Q and Artrocker, I will therefore focus on these two music
magazine’s publishing companies and compare to discover which
would be most appropriate and suited to my alternative music
magazine ‘Interzone’.
• Bauer Media Group – Q
• Volcano Publishing – Artrocker

3. Bauer Media Group
http://www.bauer.co.uk/
The Bauer media group was founded in the UK in 1987 and is now a successful
worldwide company. It published 282 magazines and sells in 15 different countries
, as well as having a number of TV and radio stations. These magazines include
Q and Kerrang, two of the best known and popular music magazines. Other
magazines Bauer produces include TV guide magazines and others, the
company has no overall specific genre or target audience as it varied from each
magazine.
Using Beaur as Interzone music magazine's distributor would help the small unique
magazine gain a larger audience as the company would aim to cell more widely
and achieve a big sale and audience for the company. The contents of the
magazine however would loose some of its individuality, independence and
features of the spec genre of music in audience to appeal to the large
audience.. However, larger companies are capable of creating and producing
magazines which sell global ad the high status and recognition of the company
in the music industry would help attract attention and get exclusive contents such
as interviews from artists and musicians for the magazine which would appeal
the fan base as the magazine would contain better, popular and well known
alternative music artists which would come as a great benefit.

4. Volcano Publishing
http://www.volcanopublishing.co.uk/
Volcano Publishing is an option to producing the alternative music magazine
Interzone. Volcano Publishing is based in London and is a two year old company
and has not yet produced and published magazines on a large commercial
scale to a audience in the millions, National and International. Instead the
company focuses on producing magazines for a much more specific audience.
Volcano Publishing distributer published the alternative music magazine
Artrocker. A magazine that is published in a small independent, isolated and very
individual company allows the magazine and company to have more unique
qualities and to contain more forms and conventions of the music genre specific
to the magazine. This allows it to focus completely on appealing to its target
audience and meeting their ideologies. Volcano Publishing alternative music
magazines meet what alternative music fans want and expect from a magazine
instead of trying to sell world wide; therefore large scale publishing company's
could not achieve this specific quantity within their magazines as they aim to
appeal to a much wider audience in able to sell more magazines.

5. Interzone Magazine’s Choice Of Publishing Company
The choice of publishing company for the alternative music magazine Interzone is
the Bauer Media Group. This is because this publishing company would help the
magazine achieve recognition and fill the gap in the market more efficiently.
Smaller magazine companies such as Volcano Publishing would allow the
magazine to completely follow the conventional alternative genre and its codes
and ideologies, however I feel that Bauer would be able to sell at a larger scale
and would therefore gain the magazines recognition and would help encourage
there to be a larger variety of alterative music magazines.
It would also help the music genre of alternative to be better appreciates as it
would be accessible at a larger scale, the music and artists would also be more
popular and would gain recognition an would be listened to by a larger
audience rather than just the immediate niche fans. This again would help gain
more interest in the alternative music genre and would help close the gap in the
current market.

6. Common Magazine Advertisement
The logos and images on this slide are brands and companies that are frequently advertised in music
magazines:

7. Interzone’s Advertisement
Brand/ Company Advertisements:
Alcohol Clothing Tv and Film Cars Perfume/ Cologne
Music/ Album/ Artist Advertisements:

8. Reasons for Interzone’s Advertisement
choices
The brands and companies have been specifically chosen to relate to the alternative genre ‘s forms and
conventions and also appeal to its audience. The chosen music artists and albums to advertise within the
magazine are within the alternative genre to also appeal to the target audience. I have chosen to
advertise newly released or upcoming albums which are; Coexist by The XX, An Awesome Wave by Alt – J, III
by Crystal Castles and Holy Fire by Foals. Some of these artists are features within Interzone’s magazine issue.
Other brand new alternative artists to be advertised within Interzone magazine include Grimes, Chvrches,
Miles Kane, Jake Bugg, Palma Violets and Toro Y Moi, advertise within an alternative music magazine will
help these albums and artists achieve their recognition. Interzone magazine will also advertise music related
companies one being Apple as there is a competition within the issue to win their products. V festival will also
be advertised to support live performances and appeal to fans who enjoy seeing their favourite bands and
artist live, Ticket Master will be advertised also.
Other brands and companies that will be advertised within Interzone magazine also relate to the alternative
music genre and appeal to the want and needs of the audience; these brands and companies being
Alcohol, Cars, Clothing, TV and Film, Perfume and Cologne. Firstly the alcohol that will be advertised within
the magazine include Bacardi and Jack Daniels as they are drank by both genders in the target audience
and are most commonly found in adverts in music magazines. Clothing companies include Levis, Topshop
and Topman. Levis are the most common designer clothing brand to be advertisement to alternative music
fans. Topshop and Topman is the most popular high street clothing company that sells clothing aimed at the
audience of the alternative music genre therefore is most appropriate to feature as an advertisement in
Interzone magazine. Both cologne and Perfume will be advertised as the target audience of Interzone
magazine is both male and female, popular well known designers include Chanel for woman and Hugo Boss
for men. The car company BMW will be advertised and the cars it produces are aimed at both sexes and
are popular among Interzone’s audience. Lastly, for TV and film I chose to advertise the popular TV
programme among young people, ‘E4’; and for films, instant access to films is most popular among the
younger generation instead of DVDs, that is why I chose to advertise Netflix in Interzone Music Magazine.

9. Online Presence
Interzones online presence would include being on social networking sites such
as twitter and Facebook as these sites are a part of its audiences’ every day life
and daily routine to find out news and updates. Wed addresses are listed in the
‘Featured’ column of its contents page along with a QR code to allow readers to
have instant access to the sites which makes Interzones online presence
interactive and social with its readers.
Interzone would also have its own website which included a vast amount of
information ranging from information on artists to tour dates, ticket providers, in
new music, online interviews and online interviews which would be uploaded to
Interzone own YouTube account also. Having a website would allow its reader to
find out updates, news and information on the magazine wherever they are and
whenever they want, fulfilling their interests and needs for music.

10. Apps
Apps would be a popular part of Interzone Music
Magazine’s business and purchases as new technology and
instant access on devices such as phones, iPods, iPads and
kindles to magazines and books are the new way of
reading.
Interzone magazine would be able to be downloaded into
a readers book/ magazine library on their kindle and also
into the ‘Newsstand’ on their iPhone, iPad or iPod. This
would allow Interzone’s monthly readers to purchase the
magazine instantly and virtually which is can be there
preferred method of purchase as it is more efficient and
convenient that going out or carrying an actual magazine.