Motorboat Owner magazine closes

carlnaj

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just had this email from motorboat owner magazine, such a shame

This email comes to you not with the usual excitement of a new issue, but with the sad news that Motorboat Owner has closed. We are sure that you are as disappointed as us with this announcement, but events have conspired to ensure that we were left with no alternative. We have shed blood, sweat and tears over the last eight years to ensure that MBO is the best motorboat magazine in the UK, and judging by our reader numbers, and feedback received, we met that target, and then some. We were, without doubt, the most widely read magazine on the subject in the UK. Unfortunately this alone was not enough to keep us afloat, and sadly there will be no more issues of Motorboat Owner.

We would like to thank, from the bottom of our hearts, the readers who have enjoyed the journey with us. Your messages of support, and your editorial contributions freely given, have been an inspiration that kept us plugging away for the last 91 issues. We would especially like to thank those that have donated to us over the last few months. We hope that you feel you have received value for your donation, if not in issues going forward then in our back issues library. On that note please do take advantage of this and download any issue you may have missed since we launched in 2013. They are all there, and will be for a month or two. Just log in, click the back issues tab and download till your heart’s content. Even after our website closes, the issues will remain on the Issuu platform, although these will need to be viewed with an internet connection and are not downloadable.

We would also like to give our heartfelt thanks to the businesses that supported us through advertising, particularly those that put their faith in us in the early days. You are what made the last eight years possible, and we literally could not have done it without you. There are too many to list individually, but you know who you are and it has been an honour and a privilege to work with you in this fabulous industry.

Lastly, a big thanks to our hard working back-office team. John, our advertising manager, and Pam and John our proof reading team and boat show stand staff. Without these three, Motorboat Owner would barely have got off the ground.

Whatever the future holds, we will forever cherish the years spent at Motorboat Owner. Meeting the readers at boat shows, taking some of you on our Cruises in Company and generally feeling that we made a positive contribution to boat owner’s and the marine industry in the UK and overseas, has made every minute memorable and worthwhile.

We hope that we bump into many of you again and I would like to wish everyone an excellent boating season. As the late Captain Sir Tom said "Tomorrow will be a good day"
 
Just received an email from Neale Byart, the Editor of the Motorboat Owner online magazine, informing that the magazine is now sadly closed, which is such a shame, as it was an excellent source of information and articles aimed at the ‘smaller’ motorboat market......and a great replacement for the Motor Boat Monthly magazine.
 
That's a huge shame. It always amazed me what they were able to turn out every month, mostly just the two of them. They must have been working 24 hours a day sometimes!

I guess advertising revenue as the only income stream is a tough route to success, and I'm sad that it didn't work for them.
 
That's a huge shame. It always amazed me what they were able to turn out every month, mostly just the two of them. They must have been working 24 hours a day sometimes!

I guess advertising revenue as the only income stream is a tough route to success, and I'm sad that it didn't work for them.
+1.
I’m interested to see/hear what they do next. Whatever it is, I wish them every success.
 
+1

A real loss. I'm assuming the closure was for financial reasons.

I've always been intrigued that it was issued without charge and assumed (naively perhaps) that advertising revenue must have covered the costs. I know that there were requests for donations latterly but why not introduce a modest subscription charge for all? I would happily have paid, say, an annual subscription and, if Neale did something of similar quality in the future, I happily pay a subscription then.
 
Got the e-mail earlier - a big loss and such a shame after all the hard work that Neale, Claire and their team have put in. I always thought that it was a significant undertaking and they did brilliantly in pulling it all together every month and we could get it at no cost - quite unbelievable really! To my shame I hadn’t realised that they had requested donations until I saw it mentioned today - I guess I just downloaded on autopilot

I messaged Neale and he said that they have been overwhelmed by the messages of support they have received since sending the e- mail out so hopefully they will feel some satisfaction for a job very well done at what will be a difficult time for them. Wishing them all the best in future endeavours.
 
Just received an email from Neale Byart, the Editor of the Motorboat Owner online magazine, informing that the magazine is now sadly closed, which is such a shame, as it was an excellent source of information and articles aimed at the ‘smaller’ motorboat market......and a great replacement for the Motor Boat Monthly magazine.


Such a shame a great loss it was an interesting and down to earth read, I wish them all well
 
Such a shame they could not make it work despite their best efforts, it has been a great publication.

It will be missed.
 
Very sad indeed. It was a good read and covering topics that MBY left aside. Really liked the detailed test reports and some DIY stuff.
91 issues made since 2013, quite an achievement.
 
Sad news, always enjoyed the read. Hope something bigger and better comes along for them. Not sure why i pay for MB&Y as its mostly an advertorial.
MBY became too much lifestyle and just scratching the surface. Like the “find me a 100k sportscruiser” type of column; very short descriptions with not much news. In the past MBY dived more into technical topics imho. Shame..
 
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