No Bluffing - Poker Magazine Growth Is Explosive
Published: Friday, December 31, 2004 Online-Casinos.com
NO BLUFFING - POKER MAGAZINE GROWTH IS EXPLOSIVE
Bluff Magazine hits 150,000 circulation on second issue
The latest evidence of poker’s continuing surge in popularity can be seen
in the immediate and continuing success of recently launched Bluff Magazine, a
print publication based in Atlanta GA.
In only its second issue, Bluff has exceeded 150,000 in circulation to become
the largest per issue circulation poker publication in North America.
“I’ve never seen a new publication take off like this”, publisher
and co-founder Eric Morris said this week. “I’ve been involved in the
launch of several successful magazines over the past nine years, and this kind
of instant success is unprecedented.”
An 84 percent news-stand sell-through rate on Bluff’s premiere issue has
opened the floodgates on newsstand demand. Bluff has gone from 7,000 newsstand
copies at launch to over 70,000 with its second issue. Bluff is now carried by
many of the major newsstand outlets across the country including Barnes &
Noble, Borders, Walton Books, Books-A-Million, Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), Albertsons
(NYSE: ABS), and Kroger (NYSE: KR).
Bluff can also be found in over 100 card rooms in 21 states and at live poker
events nationwide such as those produced by the fast-growing Amateur Poker League.com.
What’s the secret to Bluff’s success? According to co-founder and self-described
poker junkie, Eddy Kleid, “Poker is hot right now, and Bluff is providing
the right mix of content to pique the interest of a new generation of poker player.
Bluff is not just a compendium of poker strategy articles, it also focuses on
the excitement surrounding the dream of becoming a professional poker player.”
With features such as “Poker Like a Rock Star” (a day in the life of
a hip 25 year-old poker superstar) and “Dan’s Diary” (the ongoing
saga of an aspiring professional who dropped everything to give it his best shot),
Bluff is the first pop culture poker publication to hit the market. “I think
part of what makes Bluff so enticing is the fact that anyone can become the next
star on the World Poker Tour, it doesn’t matter how old, tall, strong, or
rich you are. Our goal is to get people excited about this poker.”
Presently a bi-monthly publication, Bluff plans to become monthly in late Spring
2005.
STOP PRESS: As we went to press the news was coming in that the publishers of
Bluff Magazine will be on CNBC at 7:30 AM on January 4th, 2005 at 7:30 AM to discuss
the popularity of internet poker
