And therein lies the hidden pitfall. You can buy a title, but you have little control over whether the pretty much irreplaceable, freelance writing staff are going to play along. From their point of view, this is their opportunity to make sure there’s no place in the lifeboat for any members of the management team they’d rather see the back of, pay-back for overbearing, rude, inconsiderate, self-serving or just plain objectionable behaviour or business practices.
Unlikely? Improbable? It’s happening – right now. Which leaves at least one golden parachute in serious danger of hitting the ground, with a resounding thud. So, let’s just say, if I was a major publishing house, currently in the process of snapping up (or being handed) a high-profile audio title, I’d be taking a long hard look at which parts of the existing management team were getting grandfathered in (or not) – and just how happy the writers might be about that. Because when all is said and done, they are your content creators and no content means no magazine. In a field like high-end audio, quality content is paramount and the trusted, experienced, capable contributors who can provide it are few and far between. You need to make sure that box with the pretty wrapping isn’t empty when you open it…
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