Online Space of Alvin Jimenez
Playboy Philippines’ First Cover Girl?
I know, I know, this is my third consecutive post regarding Playboy Philippines. It wasn’t really a choice. News just keeps on coming in, and I’m sure no one’s complaining.
In my previous post, I mentioned that Playboy should follow the route of C! and Manifesto, and have the title distributed by Mega Publishing. Apparently, C! publishing is bringing in Playboy! What this bodes for Manifesto, no one knows for sure, but there is a definite overlap in terms of target market.
On to the juicier stuff. Do you want to know who the first cover of Playboy Philippines will be?
Initial reports claim that it was supposed to be Ehra Madrigal people. What became of that shoot, no one knows, but apparently, it was enough for Eric to get the boot. (How can you go wrong with the Tanduay 2008 Calendar Girl?)
After failed efforts with the now defunct Pump, and a short tenure at Maxim, having him as the “default EIC” choice for lad mag start-ups has since then been questionable. No question, the fellah is still and will always be talented, but he should move on to a different genre altogether.
The choice of Ehra Madrigal also gives us a good idea of their editorial direction. It’s safe to say that we’re going to have the only edition of Playboy with no full frontals and “centerfolds”. Unless she takes it all off, there is just no way. Or is there? 
Update: No, C! is not bringing in Playboy. Also, Vince Sales is back with T3. Will not say anything until the actual magazine is out.
Similar Posts:
- My Prediction for Playboy Philippines
- Playboy Philippines nearing Launch
- My Review of Playboy Philippines Issue #1
- Who is Vartuk Aruelles?
- Miriam Quiambao in Playboy Philippines
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| Print article | This entry was posted by Alvin Jimenez on January 21, 2008 at 8:17 am, and is filed under Magazines, Others, Publishing. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site. |
about 2 years ago
Hey you seem to have a handle on a lot of information on Playboy! I can tell you C Magazine is not bringing Playboy in….if you did not pick it up it was in the newspapers! A young Chinese businessman is bringing it in…As for Mega distributing, I really doubt it….as for Eric, I imagine he would have been the logical choice but not the right choice with his fiasco in Pump that seems to be hounding him. I wouldn’t be surprised if he is behind a new mag called Playhouse…
about 2 years ago
Hi don. I found that out too, that’s why i’ve refrained from posting other info until I’m 100% sure
Nope, I didn’t pick this up from a newspaper. I’ve seen playhouse, and even though a lot of people think Eric has lost his touch, I don’t think he’s capable of coming up with something as crappy as that.
about 2 years ago
Alvs, there was an article on who was bringing playboy in…all i remember the reporter was a lady by the name of grey, pinay ito…..saw the article but can’t rembember the newspaper….you might be surprised, fhm was de kahon from the US when eric started it, Pump was from the ground up…i would have expected it to have a similar formula…why reinvent the wheel…apparently not so, so it folded, playhouse has an uncanny similarity
about 2 years ago
hey dude have you seen Playhouse Philippines? Eric is supposedly the EIC. I can’t find copies on the magazine stalls.
So if this is true, the Playboy PH deal is off! (franchise cost too high, not surprising apart from the censors)
about 2 years ago
don,
Though FHM is a foreign franchise (complete with brand book and all), it’s not easy to maintain a 110,000-130,000 circulation magazine. Dami mo pwede maging potential problems.
Pwedeng frequent buyers magsasawa na etc. So the magazine also needs to evolve with its readers. If you notice with the January ish of FHM, they underwent a redesign. This doesn’t mean though that FHM UK told them to have a redesign — it simply means the editorial staff though it was the best time to give the readers something new.
The reason why pump failed is because:
1. Eric was both the Publisher and the Editor
2. They were a startup
3. Along with being a startup, the distribution network was non existent. The company that published Pump was a multi-level marketing company. They tried to distribute the magazine through these channels.
I remember being in Baguio tapos nakita ko one fruit and veggie vendor selling Pump. The magazine did not make it into the hands of its target market.
4. The product itself, was a piece of crap. Everything about it was just below standard. Lugi ka sa P120.
jayvee,
Yes. That magazine sucks even more. In their first issue, they actually published the advertising rates in the back part of the magazine. I mean really, who does that? I guess they wanted to cut back on media kit expenses.
I doubt that Eric is affiliated with Playhouse. But yes, I know that he no longer is with Playboy (If it even comes out). There is one more personnel change that I cannot divulge until March 15. That’s only 5 days away:)
As of the moment though, wala ako balita if theyre still going to push through. If ever they do, they can’t rely on the brand name solely. They have to back it up with top notch content.
about 2 years ago
bro,
I just bought issue 2 of Playhouse. I will write a review soon. Apparently it isn’t Eric who’s EIC but this guy named Zak “Zorro” Zamora nga. He doesn’t even appear on Google searches. Yeah I did hear about the rumor that Eric isn’t going to be with Playboy anymore.
based on the editor’s note, he doesn’t write well.
You know what I noticed? Why does it seem that we have so little choices for editors for guy magazines. Look at Maxim, FHM, Pump (RIP), MANUAL — it’s a rotation between Vanni, RJ Ledesma, and Pierre (I think he was formerly with MANUAL as well) who take on positions with these magazines.
No bashing here — its just an observation. These guys are good by their own right but dont we have NEW talent? (I heard that RJ was also offered the Playboy position but he declined for obvious reasons.
)
about 2 years ago
lol, i dont get what playhouse’s market is. from what ive seen though im pretty sure they’re not going to last very long.
people seem to think it’s so easy to put out a men’s mag… get women, and a few articles, etc.
yup. when vanni left maxim i actually saw him inside the summit office. i think he was contributing to marie claire at the time.
about the eic’s playing musical chairs, well the names you mentioned already have relationships with talent managers, etc, making it easier for them to talk to potential cover women. sometimes, people tend to forget that these people can write too. Minsan naman (and without naming names, but he’s one of the people you mentioned), some of them write very well, pero if the feel of the mag becomes too “intelectual”, hindi bebenta.
based on experience, men who buy lad magazines buy it for the escape. most don’t want to think too hard just to can get entertained. it’s a magazine, not a novel.
*heard that eric is back with maxim, what are the odds?
about 2 years ago
hey alvin, unlikely that eric will go back to maxim….unless they fire the current eic, pierre who seems to be doing alright, besides a friend of mine over there mentioned a blunder eric committed over there…