Canada’s premier motorcycle news website is set to close, as Canada Moto Guide‘s publisher Courtney Hay announced the news this week. Hay took over CMG a little over a year ago, after her husband Rob Harris (the Founder of Canada Moto Guide) passed away in a motorcycle accident.
Since then, the struggle of keeping CMG operational and profitable, especially during one of the most difficult times in the motorcycle industry, has been too much for Hay and her family, as she now looks to shut down Canada Moto Guide, unless a new publisher can be found.
This news is unfortunate to hear, as it means that the Canadian motorcycle market seems set to lose one of its most important voices, not to mention the larger implications Hay’s announcement reveals about the online media landscape for the motorcycle industry.
“Across the board in Canada, digital and print publishing companies are struggling to keep afloat in the ever-murkier space between content and advertising,” said Hay in her statement, nodding to the marketing-as-content trend we have seen lately in the motorcycle industry.
This is a sentiment that virtually every publisher will admit to, either publicly or privately, and the fact that we have seen a number of publications close or change drastically over the past few years should affirm the notion.
For Canada Moto Guide, it remains to be seen whether a white knight publisher will come to the rescue of this reputable media outlet, but Hay is looking to seal the fate of the publication, one way or another, by September 1st, 2017. Interested parties should contact Courtney Hay directly.
“It will take a new Publisher and/or owner who has the resources (mostly time and passion) to live and breathe this wonderful Canadian magazine in the way it needs to get back to its full potential,” commented Hay in her posting.
Canada Moto Guide has always been Asphalt & Rubber‘s go-to source for motorcycle news in Canada; and for Canadian riders, CMG really is regarded as the best online outlet for two-wheeled enthusiasts. We certainly hope we aren’t seeing the final chapter of its story.
Source: Canada Moto Guide
