Like Apple's Steve Jobs, the Russian billionaire owner of The Independent, Alexander Lebedev, sees brand value in the letter 'i'.
The launches of Apple's various 'i' devices are the most talked-about technology events of the year, with the company's die-hard fans regarding Jobs as a techy deity.
The brand power of the ninth letter of the alphabet is now to be employed in a more traditional medium, described by Lebedev as 'the first quality national newspaper launch for almost 25 years'. Or so read the attendant press release, which was reprinted verbatim on page two of the 18 October issue of Lebedev's London Evening Standard.
A more considered view could be that i is a brand extension aimed at boosting sales of the flagging Independent and Independent on Sunday.
The Indy, heralded for its innovation and campaigning front pages, has been hit hard by the desertion of print readers and now sells just 96,000 full-price copies a day, compared with an average circulation of 260,000 in 2004.
The 56-page, compact i, which has a cover price of 20p, launches this week with a nationwide distribution of up to 400,000, backed by an outdoor campaign created by Beattie McGuinness Bungay.
Targeting younger readers
The outdoor activity will run on buses and posters in cities including London and Manchester. On i's launch yesterday (Tuesday), 26 October, 100,000 free copies were handed out across the country. An iPad app will follow imminently as the publisher looks to lure a younger demographic. The paper, as well as The Indy, will also benefit from the expansion of the remit of London Evening Standard's marketing director, Matt Harrison, to cover all titles.
Andrew Mullins, managing director of i's parent titles, says the initial distribution figure of 400,000 will be adapted according to demand. 'We have different models and it depends on what is picked up,' he says. 'It is making sure we can find the right hotspots.' Executives at the paper believe that it will gather momentum in urban areas, but have not finalised their plans.
The title appears to be aimed at two groups: 'lapsed' readers of quality newspapers; and those who fork out £1 every day on a paper and read only about one third of it.
Mullins likens i to a training product that 'will get readers back into "qualities"', and uses an analogy from the drinks industry to illustrate the point.
'When brands reach maturity, owners keep them alive over a long period of time by refreshing them and adding line extensions,' he explains. 'When Smirnoff Ice was launched, for example, it sold millions. As a result, Smirnoff sold more of its core products. It is about reinventing the mother brand.'
The launch has certainly excited the media and marketing community. Yet i could potentially cannibalise sales of the £1 Indy, especially as it will be edited by the latter's editor, Simon Kelner.
Rob Lynam, head of trading non-broadcast at media agency MEC, predicts this will be the case. 'Inevitably, it will erode some of The Independent's sales, but I can also see it eroding sales of other quality dailies,' he says. 'Its price may also attract younger readers who do not regularly buy a newspaper during the week.'
Mullins believes the current 'information overload' means that many people want the 20 most-important stories in digestible form. 'When The Independent launched its compact format, it brought lapsed readers back because of its convenience. This will do the same.'
The success of Metro since its launch in 1999 would suggest that there is an appetite for a quick and digestible news product, as long as its owner can sustain steep financial losses - a commitment Lebedev appears willing to make.
News International and Associated Newspapers closed their respective free organs, thelondondpaper and London Lite, because of unsustainable costs.
There has been speculation among media buyers that there will be a business plan in place for i to move to a freesheet model, should the 20p cover price not garner enough sales to make it sustainable. However, Lynam believes the switch would be prevented by a backlash from rival publishers, who could threaten newsagents with the withdrawal of their own titles if they distributed i free of charge.
Furthermore, Lynam believes that i will not use the London Evening Standard's vending points in central London, as, for the most part, they are situated at stations at the end of people's morning journey, thus missing out on the commuter read.
Crucial to i's success will be the type and volume of ads it carries. Before it has audited circulation figures, the paper will carry the same ads as The Independent. Should it gain traction, however, i will hope to attract advertisers from the telecoms, finance, motor and entertainment categories.
Lynam, for one, thinks it is has every chance of success, particularly as it will be the 'most competitively priced paper on the newsstand'.
INDEPENDENT GROUP FACTS AND FIGURES
Title Price Distribution
- i 20p 400,000 initially
- The Independent £1.00 182,766 (119,622
excluding bulks)
- The Independent on Sunday £1.80 155,174 (102,551
excluding bulks)
[Source: ABC]
TIMELINE
1986: The Independent launches
1990: The Independent on Sunday launches
2003: The titles switch from a broadsheet to compact format
2004: The Indy is named best daily newspaper at London Press Club awards
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