March 31, 2009
Wired UK launches
Condé Nast’s second major launch party this year takes place tonight – the second attempt at a UK edition of technology/culture title Wired, cover above.
The original US edition of Wired first appeared as an independent back in March 1993, and was bought by Condé Nast in 1998. For two years from 1995, The Guardian newspaper published a UK edition, designed by Mark Porter, jointly with the US owners. Read more about that first UK edition here.
This new UK edition can be described as brave for two reasons. Firstly, what a crazy time to launch a magazine, at the beginning of what at the very least will be a tough recession. But I guess Condé Nast believe that if they can make it work now, it will work forever.
Secondly and more relevantly to discussion here, why launch a local edition at all?
From the beginning, US Wired was creatively excellent. It preceded the advent of ubiquitious internet provision by some years so was perfectly placed to become the journal of theory and practice for the new medium. Alongside the revolutionary content, the design was something new too. Designers John Plunkett and Barbara Kuhr took full advantage of metallic and flouro inks to make the magazine look what now would be described as magazine-y. They were stunning examples of print design that somehow get overlooked in overviews of the subject.
Fast forward to today, and Scott Dadich is art-directing the title and deservedly winning publishing awards left right and centre, his layouts making what might otherwise be either be rather dry, or worse, sensationalist subjects readable and engaging. It continues to be published from San Francisco, just down the road from where most of the technology covered gets conceived, and sells internationally.
So why launch a local edition? The recent launch of an Italian Wired (shiny silver cover below) at least gets over the language barrier. But another English language version seems an unnecessary move.
However, since it’s coming, how have the UK team done? The answer is, not bad given the circumstances.
There are some good reads here, mostly new stuff but some bought in from the US edition. Content that attempts to justify an English edition includes a slightly past its sell-by date look at the gestation of the BBC iPlayer and a photographic portfolio by Philip Sinden of the ‘People Who Really Run Britain’ (above), while the cover story from the latest US edition is replayed here with a considerably less effective design (below). Good to see fellow blogger and Campaign columnist Russell Davies move a little further into the limelight with a typically contrary column and a piece about unbooks.
To be fair, art director Andrew Diprose and his small team have a thankless task establishing their own approach in Dadich’s shadow. They’ve worked without direct input from Dadich but have deliberately taken a bit from America in terms of fonts and special inks. Their problem is that while the concept of the magazine remains the same, the comparison of the two editions is a case study in the differences between UK and US publishing. The design of American Wired is the epitome of the heavily worked, detailed pages created by a large US team (a measure of their success is that they don’t design/edit the life out of the pages with their resources and processes).
Meanwhile here at home, Diprose’s smaller team have created a lighter version of Wired using the same elements: extra inks, custom fonts (Zoro, based on a seventies typeface), plenty of devices and logos, and of course, infographics.
It’s neither as slick nor as dynamic as the US title, but has it’s moments, such as the Simon Norfolks’s close up shots of supercomputers, and the design of the Your Life is a Number feature (both below).
Overall, though, the new Wired feels a little too sensible and safe, an over-reliance on photos of electrical cables being typical. It’s not a bad launch issue but too much of it feels like other magazines rather than a genuinely vibrant new launch. Lets hope Condé Nast are in a position to give it a few issues to discover its own voice.
18 Comments
Comment on March 31, 2009 by James Kelleher says:
I’ve been waiting to get my hands on this for a long time, a few nice spreads there by the look of it.
Astonishing that it’s launching right at the edge of the black hole, particularly as the US edition seems to have dropped its page count massively over the past few issues, but I guess this is something Condé Nast committed to when “the patient” looked a lot healthier.
Is that the end of the US-flavoured Wired in the UK/Ireland (outside of the import shelf)? It would seem strange – and foolhardy – to have both editions appear side-by-side on the newsstand.
Comment on March 31, 2009 by Michael [linefeed] says:
The big problem seems to be that Wired UK will simply become Wired US Lite, both in terms of content and design. They’ll need a maverick not a mimic to get over that hurdle. It does feels like a bit like a mistake to make Wired more ‘local’ if there’s no language barrier involved. And that ‘What’s Next’ spread looks terrible.
Comment on April 1, 2009 by KS says:
How strange that both the British launch and the Italian have bought Simon Norfolks’s images. The Italian bought the Ascension Island story (first published in the guardian back in 2002/3 I think) and now the British launch with the computer chips. A pity they couldn’t commission a new story, no?
Comment on April 1, 2009 by Gary says:
I’ve not seen the real thing yet as I couldn’t make the launch, but I did design the initial dummy that was put together for market research.
I felt whilst CN didn’t want to go into ‘Stuff’, ‘T3′ territory, there was a move toward going heavier on gadgets and tech, presumably for ad revenue. What’s harder to figure out, is what the mag stands for, in terms of it’s positioning.
I agree with Michael in that one can’t rely on exclusivity of more ‘local’ stores, as the mag is of course, by it’s nature a global phenomena. In the US edition, you’re as likely to read (the excellent) piece about a Dutch diamond heist, as you are about a bunch of guys who rescue ailing tankers, (another incredible piece). With stories like this in the US edition, I think the UK team have a tough job on their hands. Even the online versions don’t really compare in terms of their depth of content.
The Wired reader is incredibly savvy, and I would think, a very hard sell. Perhaps the new UK mag is supposed to appeal to the UK mass-market, and not so much to the existing US subscriber?
I’m not commenting on the design, those are big boots to fill!
Comment on April 1, 2009 by James Kelleher says:
I hope you’re wrong about the move to more gadget roadtests et cetera, Gary. Condé Nast may have wanted to emphasise that side of things in the dummy for obvious reasons, but if it moves that way in the real thing I’ll keep buying the US edition, which already has far too much of that stuff anyway. Wired’s strength is in its feature well, and I’d hate to see their long-form pieces get stiffed in favour of endless 10 Best Luxury Altimeter-Thermometer-MP3-Segway Hybrids guff.
Comment on April 1, 2009 by LondonLee says:
It’s all about the ad pages baby. I work at a more “serious” science and tech magazine and we started doing a product section last year.
Of course in the current climate we could run six pages of Angelina Jolie naked playing with an iPhone and still get no ads.
Comment on April 2, 2009 by James Kelleher says:
I’d argue that having your sales department dictate structure and content against the interests of the reader is the sort of short-termism that got us into this mess in the first place.
Comment on April 2, 2009 by LondonLee says:
I’d argue that too but what can you do about it? I’m just the oily rag, not the mechanic.
We do still run long articles about genetics and biotech so we haven’t sold our soul completely.
Comment on April 2, 2009 by anon says:
Great timing by Conde Nast, hosting an expensive party the day before decimating Wired.com and Ars Technica. You go, Newhouses!
Comment on April 3, 2009 by GlenH says:
A technology and futurist magazine written on paper and distributed by diesel powered trucks. How very 1975.Can’t wait to see the cuniform version on mud bricks distributed by ox-carts..
Comment on April 7, 2009 by Steve Kirkendall says:
I quite liked it actually – although I was annoyed when the cool flourescent sticker on the front fell off somewhere on the way back to work.
LondonLee – can you let me know if you ever run that Angelina Jolie piece?
Comment on April 7, 2009 by Ant Hill says:
It is already Wired US lite. The Coraline ‘blip’ was a far better article in US 17.02, and the Cool Your Jets was a direct reprint from 17.01. That isn’t even past Start section. I now have to work out how to get the US version back in my hands.
Comment on April 8, 2009 by Johnny Laird says:
Can’t see it lasting..
Comment on April 8, 2009 by Patrick says:
I gave it a go…I really did…It just feels and reads differently to the US version, why I can not say, but I will be subscribing to the US version by mail. Sorry Wired UK.
Comment on April 19, 2009 by Andrew says:
I much prefer the US version, and am not happy that several articles from previous editions of Wired US are reprinted this month (and more to come next month).
I used to get Wired US from Borders but they’ve now switched to the UK version. Anyone know where you can pick up the US version?
Failing that, will have to subscribe…
Comment on May 29, 2009 by Robert says:
I, being in Canada, subscribe to the US version (I’ve been subscribing, for, what, 12 years now…), but I will pick up the UK version (it’s fairly easily available in the big mag ‘shops’ which carry lots of imports). I recently flipped through the UK version and found it had a different ‘feel’ to it. As a Canuck it was funny, I could feel myself ‘positioned’ (reader-taste-wise) right in the middle of both mags!
Comment on November 13, 2009 by koustourika says:
Firstly, sorry for my bad english (french peoples are bad in english, that’s a fact), and for my very late comment.
But after some UK EDITIONS issues, i feel diferent about it. Wereas some articles are picked up from the US edition, i found this new edition very “fresh”.
I buy WIRED Us in an “import -press shop” since several years, and since 4 mounth, i buy the us AND the UK edition.
So please, keep going on that way guys!
Comment on March 17, 2010 by Disrupted, 10 a.m. « Hitchcock Blonde says:
[...] respect, rubbing the soft cardboard grain of the cover until it squeaked (it felt a little like Wired UK, but smelled [...]
