Media Vet Business Insurance Abruptly Shuts Down; Industry Consolidation, ‘Continued Structural Changes’ Blamed

Business Insurance – a well-known industry publication for 49 years, has been abruptly shut down by parent company Crain Communications.

The final issue of Business Insurance came out on Aug. 1. The publication’s website, its businessinsurance.com, and the Business Insurance events business were to cease functioning on Aug. 9, according to the closure announcement.

Why the shutdown? Crain Communications blamed “continued structural changes and consolidation” in the insurance industry since 2008.

“Business Insurance has struggled to diversify its revenue from a dependence on a declining base of print advertising,” Crain Communications said in its closure announcement. “The company invested heavily in a very talented new team, and despite their best efforts, it became clear that the changes in the market simply weren’t going to be reversed.”

KC Crain, executive vice president and director of Operations for Crain Communications, said in prepared remarks that his company, as part of “ongoing revenue transformation efforts,” has invested money in brands that offer “the best revenue mix of print, digital, events and content marketing in markets with proven growth potential.”

Crain said “it became clear that Business Insurance did not fit these criteria.”

Business Insurance editor Gavin Souter sent a mass email from his personal address to “many people in the communications world that BI has worked with” disclosing the closure news.

As with Crain Communications’ announcement, Souter blamed editorial consolidation, which he said has left many publications with a brutal advertising climate in which to operate.

“It’s been a tough time for many publications over the past few years and for BI it has been particularly difficult due to the consolidation in the insurance industry,” Souter wrote. “On the editorial side of the house, it’s given us plenty of stories to write, but it has also meant that many of our advertisers have been absorbed by other companies.”

Souter noted that the quick closure meant that uncompleted BI awards programs “40 under 40” and “Women to Watch” would also end abruptly.

“I know that submissions involve a lot of work, so I apologize for the fact that the work turns out to have been unnecessary this year,” Souter said.

Souter did not return a call to Carrier Management seeking comment as of deadline.