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HK Magazine to close, SCMP blames ‘dire’ English language print market conditions

HK MagazineHK Magazine, the popular weekly English-language guide for Hong Kong residents and visitors, is to close after a quarter of a century of publishing.

The free title, known for its wit and taking a contrarian and at times controversial approach to city life in the territory, was acquired by South China Morning Post Group from Asia City Media Group only three years ago.

The decision to close the magazine was announced earlier by the management of SCMP Group, Coconuts Hong Kong is reporting. The final issue will be published on 7 October.

An SCMP spokesperson said in a statement: The last issue of HK Magazine will be published on 7 Oct, 2016 while the operations of its website and social media platforms will cease in a few days afterward.”

“In the past few years, HK Magazine has been subjected to very challenging market conditions, which were especially dire for English-language lifestyle print media. Furthermore, the volatile advertising landscape, diminishing profitability from display advertising and event business further thwarted the magazine’s sustainability in the foreseeable future.”

“We have initiated a company-wide search to find suitable positions for the HK Magazine team. We hope that their skill sets and experience will match the current openings in SCMP and our magazines. Thus, some will be redeployed internally but eventually around five staff members might leave the company.”

The closure comes just nine months after SCMP was acquired by Alibaba.

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