Air New Zealand comes up with radical inflight reading revamp

Friday 16th February 2001

VIEW FROM ABROAD: Little Kiwi content

'Our' airline's magazine is now Australian, NICK SMITH reports

Air New Zealand has slashed local content in its flagship inflight magazine - a publication used to promote this country to incoming tourists.

In a shake-up following Air New Zealand's acquisition of Ansett Australia, the company has dumped Pacific Wave and combined its Australian and New Zealand inflight print operations to produce its first issue of Panorama this month.

Panorama contains less than 50% New Zealand content in its features. Pacific Wave usually featured up to 80% local content.

If the revamp is a hint of what is to come with the promised rebranding of the airline under new chief executive Greg Toomey, expect more control from Australia.

The ad industry has questioned the wisdom of the magazine move, with DDB's media director Kath Watson saying her company would have to take a hard look at it before choosing to use it again.

"Most of the times in the past we have used it, it's been to get at the business traveller," she said. "We would have to think about this new environment."

Another media source who declined to be named said the magazine was now essentially being run by Australians and predicted the local office, with a single editorial staff member, would "find it a struggle to get the Kiwi content in there."

Air New Zealand public relations manager Sarah Hopkins disputed the drop in local content and said the changes were designed to create an improved magazine.

The airline produces two magazines - Ansett Australia Panorama for its domestic market and Air New Zealand Panorama for its international and local flights. Air New Zealand Panorama features some Australian content but Ms Hopkins said this was not a cost-cutting exercise.

"We're aiming for a very exciting international magazine," she said. "We've had one issue of the new combined magazine and I don't think you can make any judgments yet."

But DDB's Ms Watson said as Air New Zealand's flagship publication, "it would be nice to see some articles about New Zealand. I guess that it's just a flow-on [from Air New Zealand's acquisition of Ansett]; it's cutting costs."

But she also praised Panorama's cleaner design and "international look."

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