The great Indian saga of IRS and niche magazines

The IRS 2010 study data has caused many ripples across various print forms, and more and more publications were seen voicing their views loudly and readily. Publication houses cried foul over the IRS study showing a decline in the niche magazine category and also about not including some of the newly launched niche magazine in the study at all. On the other hand, more and more niche publications are being launched, which is conveying the apparent "need" in the market.

There are a good number of niche magazines that cater to a particular need of the readers and at the same time these magazines have managed to get advertisements. Even though the IRS 2010 distanced the niche magazine publications, there are more and more publications waiting to explore the niche magazine category in India.

The other factor being that the more it gets fragmented further catering to "a" specific genre , it means that Indian readers are making a choice, an important choice of knowing more about their one specific interest. Hence, it also means that the Indian readers are willing to make the choice, even if the choice costs them money.

So to explore a bit more in this area, Adgully spoke to a few industry insiders to get a better view of things.

The consumer is willing to pay, while the market is ready to be captured, though the parameters to gauge the reach is not fully efficient, niche magazines are developing into their own full form. The category seems happy in its "missing- presence" from IRS data and seems to explore the Indian market a bit, but experts warn that the magazines will come with a shelf-life. | By Prabha Hegde [prabha(at)adgully.com]