The renewed buzz about tech magazines seems to have been spurred by the forthcoming launch of Forrester Magazine, which the Boston Globe wrote about last November. Of the five magazines covered in today's Mercury News article, Forrester Magazine differs from the other tech publishing ventures in many respects. Forrester will not accept advertising and the publication is intended primarily as a print vehicle for existing clients. Forrester's objective, as their CMO Brian Kardon says, is "to bring in energy and storytelling, but keep the sophistication associated with Forrester's otherwise detailed research." This strategy aligns with Shore's view that professional publishers increasingly have to use a variety of media to reinforce their position as experts in their field, in light of the explosion in citizen publishing where everyone has access to the Web tools and distribution to publish commentary.

Promoting their expertise via an engaging and informative publication that presents a cross-section of the research topics and outlook of their corps of analysts is a smart way for Forrester to reinforce their value to the top executives of their client companies. And, although it may seem counterintuitive, the need for a well-packaged print vehicle for reviewing case-studies and other indepth information is a common theme echoed by busy executives.

It'll be interesting to see if Forrester decides to offer a for-fee subscription to the magazine to non-clients. Given the PR effort behind the magazine's upcoming launch, it wouldn't be a surprising development.