Tag

Motorcyclist

Browsing

The rumors of the Bonnier Motorcycle Group (BMG) being for sale have been ongoing for a while now, but now they have finally come good, as Octane has been named as the buyer of BMG.

For those not familiar with Octane, it is a part of Fintech, and it operates as a portal for financing loans to powersports buyers. Why does a lending house want to buy C​ycle World, Motorcyclist, Dirt Rider, Motorcycle Cruiser, UTV Driver, ATV Rider,​ and ​Cycle Volta?

Octane CEO Jason Guss perhaps says it best in the company’s joint press release with Bonnier Corp.:

“We are acquiring these titles because we want to support brands that get people excited about powersports. Our goal for this acquisition is to ensure that unbiased product reviews, rigorous and objective testing, and informed storytelling​ will continue to be available to powersports enthusiasts.”

“When combined with Octane’s financing platform and dealership partners, consumers will soon be able to go directly from researching their dream vehicle to owning it, in a fast, seamless process.”

It is the end of an era, as we get word from Dealer News that Motorcyclist Magazine will cease its print production after its July/August edition.

Going forward, the fabled print publication will shift to a purely digital medium, focusing on its website, social media channels, and video productions.

This move comes just two and a half years after Motorcyclist switched to a six-issue per year format, as the brand tried to re-gear itself as more of a lifestyle offering for two-wheeled enthusiasts.

Episode 40 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast is a busy one, as we are back in the studio (my living room) after our live show in Portland

The show starts with a talk about the new A&R Pro premium accounts on Asphalt & Rubber, and then morphs into a discussion about the changing media landscape. Obviously, that makes it a good time to talk about the changes occurring over at Motorcyclist as well.

We then turn our attention to a recent press launch with AGV, where I rode with the new AGV Corsa R and AGV Pista GP R helmets. Quentin gets his first taste of them on the show, which is funny in a way only Quentin can make it.

We wrap-up that conversation with a discussion about heavy metals near Bakersfield, CA – home of Buttonwillow Raceway, as well as my first impressions of the new Michelin Power RS street tires.

Lastly, our final topic turns to MV Agusta, which is about to sign a financing deal with Black Ocean, a Russian investment group the hopes to make Italian motorcycles great again. All in all, it’s a jam-packed show.

You can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well. Enjoy the show!

Changes are afoot at Motorcyclist magazine, as the monthly publication is set to move to a six-issue per year format starting in Spring 2017. That transition will come from the direction of a new leader too, as Editor-in-Chief Marc Cook will be leaving Motorcyclist as well.

Cook outlined his departure, and announced the new format for Motorcyclist, in a short post to his “Cook’s Corner” column online, citing the many contributions his team of writers have made over the course of his tenure at the magazine.

As the opening paragraph to Cook’s goodbye letter coyly suggests, the media landscape in the motorcycle industry is shifting, pushing Motorcyclist magazine in a new direction, which also seems to be pushing hardcore journalists out of the medium.

Interesting news for American motorcycle enthusiasts, as nearly all your printed two-wheeled information is set to come from a singular company in the coming future. Already the recent purchaser of Cycle World, Bonnier Corporation seems poised to control a significant portion of the two-wheeled industry’s printed and online press.

Inking a two-way deal with Source Interlink, Bonnier Corp. receives in the transaction Motorcyclist, Sport Rider, Dirt RiderMotorcycle Cruiser, Hot Bike, Baggers, Super Streetbike, Street Chopper, and ATV Rider. In exchange, Source Interlink receives the TransWorld extreme and urban sports properties (except TransWorld Snowboarding), as well as Sound + Vision magazine.

UPDATE 3: Because of our article Motorcyclist Online has further refined their “Buzz” section. Of course they’ve also removed Asphalt & Rubber from their feed. We’re not expecting an apology from them at this point.

UPDATE 2: A small victory, Motorcyclist Online has changed their format to only copy the first 50 words of our text…still no link love though, and still actually copying the wrong text from us.

UPDATE: It looks like Motorcyclist Online is actually copying this story as well. Sweet irony!

I got a strange email today…which isn’t that strange in of itself, because I get strange emails on a regular basis, but the email contained a link to Motorcyclist Online, the internet version of Motorcyclist Magazine, which is owned by Source Interlink Media.

Clicking onto the link I see an article that was written this morning, published in its full text. “That’s funny” I think to myself, because we certainly never gave Motorcyclist permission to use our articles…clicking further I see we’re not the only online motorcycle site whose content is being copied onto the online pages of Motorcyclist Online…we’re just the latest addition to this blatant act of plagiarism and IP theft.