Can it actually be? Four years have passed since the first time I filled this space. Back in October of 2002 the industry was still reeling from the aftershocks of 9/11, and the consolidation that has been a part of everyday life lately was just beginning. The last thing anyone wanted (especially in the manufacturing community) was another magazine.
And yet…
So let's take a look at what has changed in the past four years. The upper end of the soundco biz has undergone some serious consolidation with Sound Image buying DB and creating a company big enough to give ClairCo a run for the number one slot. More serious consolidation has taken place in the middle of the market as the sound technology arms race has made it harder to stay competitive, and some once regional companies find themselves scratching for the gigs once reserved for anklebiters. And those heel-nippers have gotten more aggressive and techno-savvy which makes things even tougher in the middle.
The ironic thing is that the only publication that has really been covering those changes is the one that no one wanted to see in the first place. In case you are unclear, that would be the magazine you are reading right now. FOH came to be at a time when the market was in a bit of turmoil, and the truth is that we have not only survived but actually thrived–as much as anything through sheer, hard-headed stubbornness.
We recently did a survey of FOH readers and found that while some in the industry did not want another magazine, all y'all have apparently found it to be a valuable resource. Most of you who read FOH read other pro audio publications irregularly at best. Guess that means we are doing something right, but there is something else at work here, too.
At the same time as the consolidation in the sound business was happening, a shake up in the publishing business was just getting started. Today, there are two "overall" production magazines available that cover both sound and lighting. Both are backed by companies in the U.K., where that kind of publication is popular, and both are finding it tough going on this side of the pond.
Meanwhile, the big publishing companies that were the established players–United Business Media, publishers of Pro Sound News, and Huge Universe, publishers of Live Sound Int'l. as well as Pro Sound Web–have both been sold. United has been on the block for more than a year and recently sold to an equity investment firm, while Live Sound and Pro Sound Web are now owned by EH Publishing, a company that does consumer electronic publications and whose specialty is really putting on expos and conventions. Even a studio magazine that some saw as competing in the live sound space–Mix–has changed hands moving from longtime owner Primedia to Prism Publishing.
So what does all this mean to you? Well, in addition to the interesting mirroring of the live audio business, these changes have left FOH as the only live audio magazine that is privately owned and not controlled by a large corporation or investment group. It also means that with our stable of FOH, Projection Lights and Staging News, the Event Production Directory and our latest addition Stage Directions (oh yeah, did I forget to mention that we just bought that established and respected technical theatre magazine?) we are the ONLY publishing company that does nothing but support the live event production industry. We don't do cheerleading magazines or construction magazines or have to answer to some faceless group of investors.
If we have an idea, we can decide to try it or not, right away, without any long chain of command to worry about. We were talking about it the other day, and the truth is that the company runs much like a production crew with the same kind of controlled chaos and "git 'er done" attitude and no corporate BS.
The only thing left to complete the picture–and really give the industry at large fits–is to bring back the Pro Production conference. News of that is coming sooner than you might think…
Thanks for four great years.
