Imagine to launch sci-fi and fantasy title as rival to SFX

Imagine Publishing is to launch a monthly magazine for science fiction, fantasy and horror fans, pitched as a glossy rival to Future's SFX magazine.
SciFi Now, which will launch in April, aims to capitalise on the popularity of TV shows such as Doctor Who, Lost and Heroes. It is Imagine's first launch outside its core market of computing magazines and websites.
The title has been developed by most of the team behind DVD Review, the former Highbury title now published by Future, including its former editor Paul Morgan.
Imagine will similtaneously launch a website, scifinow.co.uk. Registered users will receive a weekly PDF email with interactive elements. The launch follows last month's closure of Titan Magazines' Dreamwatch after 24 years, leaving Future's title as the only broadly pitched magazine in the sector. SFX reported copy sales of 32,672 in the latest ABC results.
Damian Butt, Imagine's managing director, said the market lacked a title that captured the resurgent popularity of the genre. "SFX has been market leader for so long that it has got complacent," he said. "We want to shake things up."
He expected the core audience for the magazine to be largely male, aged 25 to 40. It will have a cover price of £4 and a print run of 50,000.