''Home Media Magazine'' was a trade publication that covered various aspects of the home entertainment industry, most notably home video distribution via VHS, DVD,

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...

, and digital copy. The magazine also covered news relating to consumer electronics, video games, home video distributors and various forms of digital distribution of movie and TV content.

History and profile

The magazine was founded in 1979 and was known as ''Video Store Magazine'' until January 2005, when it became ''Home Media Retailing''. To further its consumer focus, the magazine dropped "Retailing" at the beginning of 2007. In 2014 the magazine's print edition was reduced to biweekly and in 2015, to monthly; at the same time, the publication increased its web presence through a daily e-newsletter and frequent "breaking news" alerts. ''HM'' also published frequent special issues, such as special reports on 4K Ultra HD, Vidity, and UltraViolet; rankings of the top women in home entertainment, key digital drivers, and leading disruptors; and, in 2011, a salute to executives in home entertainment under the age of 40. The magazine was based in Santa Ana, California, and was a subsidiary of the Questex Media Group. In July 2006, ''HM'' launched a consumer magazine called ''Agent DVD'', a semi-regular periodical focusing on home entertainment news. The first issue debuted at the 2006

Comic Con International San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is co ...

in San Diego, California, and focused on titles and news that would appeal to convention-goers. The consumer magazine was later rebranded as ''Home Media Insider'' and offered only in digital form. Additionally, ''Home Media Magazine'' presented annual awards covering the best DVD and Blu-ray products. Questex ceased production of ''Home Media Magazine'' after the December 2017 issue.

''Media Play News''

In January 2018, the core team responsible for producing the ''Home Media Magazine'' print and online properties returned with an independent operation named Media Play News that offers an expanded home entertainment focus from its predecessor, covering not just

Blu-ray Disc The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and c ...

and

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

but also transactional

video-on-demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of o ...

(both streaming and purchase) as well as subscription streaming. As of December 2022, Thomas K. Arnold sits as the publisher and

editorial director Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, org ...

of Media Play News, while Stephanie Prange is the

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

. The new publication publishes a monthly magazine in both print and digital versions and maintains a website, a daily

newsletter A newsletter is a printed or electronic report containing news concerning the activities of a business or an organization that is sent to its members, customers, employees or other subscribers. Newsletters generally contain one main topic of int ...

, reviews, and breaking news alerts. Seemingly, the new publication acts both as a

curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

and an aggregator of content for the home entertainment industry, as it distributes its various forms of content using multiple channels—both digital and print. Currently, Media Plays News is used and cited by retailers, media outlets, technology reporters, and consumers in the home

entertainment industry Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have dev ...

. Media Play News often uses major conventions,

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

s, and other industry events as an additional channel to distribute its print publication. Since 2018, Media Play News has been publishing a curated list of the top forty influential

business executive A business executive is a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. Executives run companies or government agencies. They create plans to help their organizations g ...

s in the home entertainment industry. The list is titled "40 Under 40 in Home Entertainment". Media Plays News produces an annual awards contest titled the "Home Entertainment Media Play Awards". The awards are all-embracing to the home entertainment industry, covering dozens of categories.

Notes and references

Notes

References

{{Reflist

External links

''Media Play News'' website
Entertainment magazines published in the United States Entertainment trade magazines Magazines established in 1979 Magazines published in California Mass media in Orange County, California Science and technology magazines published in the United States Weekly magazines published in the United States