Hammer won't fall: Team Rock saved

Before Christmas, it looked like Metal Hammer and stablemates Classic Rock and Prog had published their last.

Good news for the new year, though, because Future Publishing, the previous owners of the titles, has stepped in to acquire Team Rock, the magazines and the websites:

“The acquisition of these classic rock brands with their associated magazines, events and websites marks a further step in our buy and build strategy,” said Zillah Byng-Thorne, chief executive of Future.

“It further reinforces our creation of a leading global specialist media platform with data at its heart, which we are monetising through diversified revenue streams. We look forward to developing further these iconic and much-loved brands and to continuing to serve their communities of dedicated enthusiasts around the world.”

Future has scooped the lot - including a radio licence - for just £800,000. Back in 2013, Future had sold just the magazines for £10.2million.

So, not perhaps a totally happy ending, as the business clearly isn't in a great shape - but there's hope, and in 2017, we need all the hope we can get.

Folding magazines: Classic Rock & Metal Hammer

This would be grim news at any time, but just before Christmas amplifies the grimness: Team Rock have Team Rock, who publish Classic Rock and Metal Hammer magazines, have called in the administrators:

Thomas Campbell MacLennan, Alexander Iain Fraser and Jason Daniel Baker of FRP Advisory LLP were appointed as Joint Administrators of Team Rock Limited (“the Company”) on 19 December 2016.

The affairs, business and property of the Company are being managed by the Joint Administrators, who act as agents of the Company and without personal liability.

The Company is being managed on a care and maintenance basis only whilst a buyer for the assets is sought. Accordingly, the TeamRock website will be unavailable for the foreseeable future.

The administrators are assessing the position regarding publication of magazines. If you are a subscriber to the Company’s publications the administrators can be contacted via email at teamrock.subscribers@frpadvisory.com.

27 people in Scotland and 46 in London have lost their jobs. According to the BBC report, Team Rock had been losing money for quite a while; they're hopeful the brands will find a buyer - and so hopefully some of those staff will be rehired.

TV on the radio - again

TeamRock, one of the 793 digital rock radio stations currently plying their trade, has done a deal with the BBC to do a rerun of Tommy Vance's last-ever Friday rock show from Radio One.

That's interesting, but this is even more tantalising:

John Moran, BBC Radio Head of Business Affairs, said: “We are pleased to be working with TeamRock to begin to unlock the BBC radio archive for further broadcast through new partnerships with commercial radio. The digital rebroadcast of this programme shows how gems from the archive can still reach new audiences.”

There hangs the possibility of other shows being dusted down and rebroadcast. And you know what eight-letter name that means, don't you?

Mark Page.

No, hang on:

John Peel.

Those sessions you neglected to tape in the 80s and 90s, and Marc Riley has yet to rebroadcast? Time to send nice letters to Absolute Radio...

Rock mags find new home

Classic Rock and Metal Hammer have changed hands, with the spectacularly named Team Rock purchasing the titles from Future.

Team Rock is led by John Myers:

Myers is executive chairman of the new company, TeamRock, which will create and distribute content to what it describes as the "large but under-served community" of rock music fans.

The new business is expected to announce more acquisitions in the next few days.

Under-served community? With the two titles here, plus a bunch of spin-off sister publications, and Bauer's Kerrang empire, and the Download Festival, and Absolute Classic Rock, I'm not sure I'd identify this as a market segment that is especially neglected, but good luck to anyone trying to build a magazine brand. You... you are interested in the print product, right?

TeamRock describes itself as a "new international multimedia content creation and distribution business" to "provide and create premium content to rock-music fans across the world via digital platforms and through the Classic Rock and Metal Hammer titles".

Oh.