Play Meter

from the editor "How's Pl.ay Meter doing?" That's a question I'm asked quite often these days. I usually answer, "Great." But it's not that simple. So for those of you who are especially interested, here is the current status of P/,ay Meter and our plans for the future. From the beginning, Pl,ay Meter was circulated to some 8,000 operators. The first issue was sent out free with a plea for paid subscriptions. Since that time more than 2,000 operators have shown us their support by entering paid subscriptions. Pl.ay Meter publishes in a highly competitive market with relatively limited advertising potential and we decided very early in the game that we would have to be heavily dependent on subscriber revenue for our income. That's why we have been charging $20 per year and why, until recently, we delivered only 12 issues per year for that price. A major problem in publishing only monthly lies in pass-along circulation. Since a monthly magazine obviously can contain at best news highlights, many prospective subscribers read a pass-along copy rather than enter their own subscriptions. The advent of the Update edition of Pl.ay Meter, published 12 times a year between regular monthly issues, has a number of objectives. One is to add to our service to paid readers by permitting us to report somewhat more timely information than we could publish just monthly. Also, Update serves as an incentive for those pass-along readers and free-riders to purchase a subscription of their own. One of the major reasons that Pl.ay Meter isn't published bi-monthly is that there are relatively few companies who would advertise with us more than 12 times a year. Publishing a full magazine with greater frequency than our advertisers are prepared to support becomes economically impractical. Update, published in a newsletter format, permits us to expand our services at a lower cost than a full issue would require. Still it does strain an already tight budget. And we do hope to expand it. That represents an additional investment on our part and it's an investment which-you guessed it-we're going to ask you, the reader, to share in. The subscription rate effective Feb. 1, 1977 will be increased from its current $20 to $25 per year. Provided things go as planned, Pl.ay meter will soon be applying for its 2nd Class Mailing Permint. This will elminate the need for any first class mail charges and will decrease the time it takesPl.ay Meter to get to you considerably. Where does this leave us? Right now the paid circulation of Pl.ay Meter is growing steadily. Our ultimate objective is to have somewhere around 8,000 paid subscribers. At that point I would envision an annual subscription rate in the $30 to $35 range. What's the bottom line? Well, it's not profit. Pl.ay Meter will indeed be lucky to show a profit for 1976. We're only in our third year of publication and they say it can take five to seven years to turn a profit in this business. On the other hand, Pl.ay Meter does provide a base from which to develop other revenues. Our regional service seminars have been successful and we are planning more for the future. Workshops and seminars in other areas of interest to the industry are also in the planning stages. Pl.ay Meter is doing pretty well then. We've had a great response to our magazine. We love the amusement machine business and what we're doing in it. We're working with some great people, and {if you are a subscriber rather than a pass-along reader) I thank you for your support. Keep in touch; we want to serve your needs. Sincerely, Ralph C. Lally II Editor and Publisher Calendar March 11-12 Amusement Music Operators Association, regional seminar. Denver Hilton, Denver, Colo. March 11-13 Music Operators of Michigan, annual convention. Kalamazoo Center, Kalamazoo, Mich. March 18-20 Wisconsin Music Merchants Association, spring convention. Olympia Hotel and Spa, Oconamawoc, Wisc. April 14-25 Milan Fair [automatics section] Milan, Italy. April 15-16 Ohio Music and Amusement Association, annual convention. Carousel Inn, Columbus, Ohio. May 12-15 Music & Amusement Association {NYC), convention and trade show. Stevensville Country Club, Swan Lake, N.Y. May20-22 Music Operators of Minnesota, convention and trade show. Holiday Inn-Downtown, Minneapolis, Minn. June 10-12 Colorado Coin Industries, annual meeting. Holiday Inn, Glenwood Springs, Colo. June 16-18 Illinois Coin Machine Operators Association, annual convention. Hospitality Motor Inn, Earth City {St. Louis), Mo. September 23-25 North Carolina Coin Operators Association, annual meeting. The Radisson Hotel, Charlotte, North Carolina.