Qantas Magazines Take-Off To New Publisher Leaving Bauer Stranded

News Limited’s custom-publishing arm Medium Rare Content Agency has pulled off a stunning coup after landing the right to publish the Qantas in-flight magazine The Australian Way, the ipad app and the Travel insider website.

Bauer Media (and the former ACP Magazines) had published the titles for almost 15 years, and what must be considered a huge blow for the publisher, it will relinquish them to the News-backed Medium Rare from mid-2015. The Australian Way has an estimated readership of 657,000 every month with a strong AB audience.

Medium Rare is a dedicated content agency that creates expert premium content across multi-channel brands. It is a joint venture with NewsLifeMedia, the lifestyle arm of News Corp Australia.

In Australia, NewsLifeMedia is a leading publisher in news, luxury, fashion, food, family and health verticals and is the number one digital magazine publisher with 39% of total sales.

Qantas’s group executive, brand marketing and corporate affairs, Olivia Wirth, said of the new publishing deal: “We’ve had a great working relationship with Bauer over the past 14 years and we’re very grateful for their significant contribution to our business in that time.

“In Medium Rare we have chosen a content publishing house that will help us evolve Qantas The Australian Way publications with the changing media landscape and new inflight technology.

“We are looking forward to working with the Medium Rare team to inspire and engage our customers as they plan and enjoy their travel,” Wirth said.

Gerry Reynolds, managing director of Medium Rare Content Agency, said: “We are thrilled to be working with one of Australia’s most iconic brands. Combined, the magazine, tablet edition, Travel Insider web site and associated social media engage with Qantas passengers at every stage of their journey. We very much look forward to taking the publications to the next level.

“With our excellent working relationships with Sky News and MCN, we are confident of providing great content to customers and integrated advertising opportunities to advertisers across the entire travel experience,” Reynolds said.