Changes Come to Variety

One of the most iconic brands in show business is undergoing some huge changes this month.  Variety magazine, Hollywood's long-standing trade publication, providing the inside dirt for over a hundred years, is hoping to turn its financial tide and regain some of the marketshare it has been hemorrhaging in this ever changing media landscape. No surprise, Variety is following practically the exact advice I offered last year for its survival, when it went up for sale. It will end its Daily Variety edition after March 19, it will eliminate its misguided paywall for its online edition, and it will revamp its Weekly Variety edition beginning March 26.

It's a model that worked well for its competitor The Hollywood Reporter. The paywall was just a misguided barricade, as readers obtained their show biz news from Deadline.com, TheWrap.com, and other online sources for free. 

Hollywood Reporter was able to rise again like a phoenix after recapturing its journalistic ideals, and there is no reason why Variety cannot do the same.