Time Inc UK to rebrand as TI Media marking ‘next chapter’ after its sale to private equity firm

Time Inc UK will change its name to TI Media next month to mark the publisher’s “next chapter” after it was bought by a private equity firm.

The rebrand will take effect from 11 June, when the company will also unveil its new logo.

The name comes from the T of Time Inc UK, which was the company’s name for four years, and the I from IPC Media, its name before that.

Time Inc UK’s magazine and digital portfolio was sold for an undisclosed sum to London-based Epiris Fund II in February.

It came just three months after US media company Meredith Corp bought out Time Inc, including its UK arm, for $2.8bn.

Time Inc UK chief executive Marcus Rich said the company was proud of its achievements under its previous names and he wanted the new branding to “speak to that successful past”.

He added: “We also wanted it to be adaptable to suit the ways we will evolve and look to extend that success under our new ownership. We are now looking forward to exploring those new opportunities as TI Media.”

Executive chairman Sir Bernard Gray said: “As a company, TI Media is proud of its past and confident of the future. Our new name opens the next chapter of our story with familiarity and new energy.”

According to Publishers Audience Measurement Company (Pamco) figures shared by Time Inc, its 40-plus UK brands reached more than 16.4m UK adults each month across print and digital in 2017.

Its titles span entertainment, women’s lifestyle, sports and technology titles, including Woman’s Weekly, Country Life, Ideal Home, Cycling Weekly, Horse & Hound and What’s On TV.

Numerous changes have already been made to Time Inc UK’s portfolio since the buyout.

Women’s lifestyle website InStyle UK shut down this week less than 18 months after the closure of its print magazine. Links to the website now send readers to the US edition.

The company said the decision not to continue with the InStyle UK licence came “as a result of Time Inc UK’s new ownership”.

Last week, Time Inc UK announced women’s magazine Look’s final edition will be published on 29 May, with its website closing in the following weeks.

Justine Southall, Time Inc UK’s managing director for fashion and beauty, blamed Look’s decline on its audience increasingly getting similar content from multiple online sources.

Just days after the buyout by Epiris, the company announced it would stop publishing music magazine NME’s free weekly magazine, turning its focus online, as print was “no longer financially viable”.

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