Adages : Advertiser taken for ride
AdAge (June 6, 2005)
By: Ken Wheaton
June 6, 2005
Advertising Age
Future Publications, which pump out special-interest consumer titles like PC Gamer, MacAddict, Guitar World, The Snowboard Journal and The Official Xbox Magazine, is now pumping pedals. Company President Jonathan Simpson-Bint and 17 of his staff members have started out Sunday on the AIDS LifeCycle benefit bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles, with the aim of raising $150,000 for charity. Not only did Jonathan wrangle up his employees- "pretty much everybody had to buy a bike" -but the team hit up their magazines' advertisers for money and sponsorships. He admitted that some were slightly apprehensive about asking advertisers for more money, but apparently he's got a good sales team. Xbox signed on as team sponsor and Microsoft went even further by printing up hats to be given to all of the riders in the benefit. Also on the team jersey: Activision and Future's travel agency. And, perhaps in a step toward social redemption, Rockstar Games, maker of the notorious Grand Theft Auto series, sponsored the team's water bottles (guess they ran out of room on the jerseys).
An interesting side note, Jonathan's wife Caroline gave birth just over a week before the race started. Daisy Love joins Milo Skywalker and Darcy Honey in the Simpson Bint brood. Yes, Milo is named after Luke. And Darcy is named after a ballerina. But asked if Daisy was named after the "Dukes of Hazzard" vixen, Jonathan replied "Oh God, no." Turns out the family just thought the world could use a little bit more love.
And how did his wife feel about him taking off on a weeklong bike ride so soon after the birth? "She's OK about it," he said, but later added, "She's been well bribed."
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About The Future Network USA
Future Network USA (www.futurenetworkusa.com), is the country's foremost publisher of cutting-edge gaming, action sports, computing and musician magazines which reach a passionate young, active, affluent male audience. Future Network USA is run by President Jonathan Simpson-Bint and ranks 13th out of the top 20 audited U.S. newsstand publishers in gross newsstand revenue. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with offices in New York, Los Angeles and San Diego, Future Network USA's publications sell in excess of 2.2 million copies per month. Its market-leading titles include PC Gamer, PSM: 100% Independent PlayStation 2 Magazine, Official Xbox Magazine, Mobile PC, Maximum PC, MacAddict, EZ Tech Guides and musician titles: Future Music (to launch April 2005), Guitar One, Guitar World, Guitar World Acoustic (bi-monthly), Guitar World Bass Guitar (bi-monthly) and Guitar World Legends (bi-monthly).
About The Future Network plc
The Future Network was founded in the UK in 1985. Today, it publishes over 90 special-interest consumer magazines worldwide, is the world�s leading publisher of games magazines and is the fifth largest magazine publisher in the UK. Future employs over 1,000 people in offices in the UK, US, Italy and France. Around 100 international editions of Future�s magazines are also published in 31 other countries across the world. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange (symbol FNET).
