Magazines battle over dual names

One magazine publisher has tabloid diva Jennifer Lopez on its board of advisers; the other has Harvard Business School professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter. One features Oscar-winning actor Jamie Foxx on its cover; the other showcases Waltham biomedical workers. One runs ads from Veuve Clicquot Champagne and Mercedes-Benz; the other runs ads from the Associated Industries of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Medical Society.

There are some obvious differences between Niche Media, which, it proclaims, publishes ''the country's preeminent regional magazine group catering to the high-end luxury market," and MassINC, a nonprofit think tank that produces a periodical about ''Politics, Ideas and Civic Life in Massachusetts."

One thing they share is a name -- at least for now.

MassINC publishes the policy-wonkish magazine CommonWealth four times a year. Niche Media -- which publishes glossy magazines for upscale readers in Manhattan, the Hamptons, Aspen, and Los Angeles -- plans to launch a quarterly publication called Boston Commonwealth in September.

That's why MassINC is suing Niche Media for trademark infringement. After several tentative efforts to resolve their differences peaceably, the two publishers now seem to be ready to fight it out in the legal arena.

''We spent nine years building up a reputation for serious journalism on public policy," says the CommonWealth publisher, Ian Bowles. ''We don't want our name associated with celebrity-watching and high-society parties."

Niche Media's publisher, Jason Binn, who describes Boston Commonwealth as a ''luxury lifestyle magazine," says that the name is appropriate. ''We're a sophisticated business. We just don't jump into anything," he says. ''It's a great generic term for describing the marketplace."

After a few months of sporadic communication between the two sides, MassINC, which is represented by the law firm Foley Hoag, filed suit on March 7 in US District Court. The core of its case: Because MassINC has been publishing CommonWealth for nine years, it has a right to the name, while Boston Commonwealth's entry into the market will cause confusion among the public.

The complaint alleges: ''Any dissatisfaction with the defendants' magazine will reflect upon, and irreparably damage, the valuable reputation and goodwill of MassINC." In the suit, the plaintiff also expresses concern that because both magazines target the state's ''movers and shakers" and because they share areas of coverage, there will be a significant overlap of readership.

Niche Media's lawyer, Thomas Senter, released a statement saying: ''MassINC is improperly claiming an exclusive right to the term 'Commonwealth,' which is in the public domain and is widely used throughout Massachusetts and beyond."

Senter added that MassINC does not have a registered trademark for the name, and that the two magazine titles are not exactly the same. ''Boston Commonwealth's focus and content, as well as its readers, advertisers and channels of distribution, could not be more dissimilar," he said.

CommonWealth has a full-time editorial staff of three and costs roughly $700,000 a year to operate, according to Bowles. Its circulation is largely free, with 10,000 print subscribers and 11,000 people who receive only the electronic version. Influential on Beacon Hill, and supported by sponsors who ante up $5,000, $10,000, or $25,000 a year, the magazine offers a serious, nonpartisan examination of public policy questions.

The most recent issue featured everything from Governor Mitt Romney discussing ideas for controlling health care costs to an examination of the auto insurance system. (In the interest of disclosure, the reporter of this article wrote a 2003 story for CommonWealth on media coverage of the Cape Cod wind farm project.)

''This is the gossip-free politics magazine," says editor Robert Keough, who acknowledges that it took time for the publication to carve out its niche. ''I don't want to start all over again having to distinguish our magazine from Jason Binn's magazine."

Binn, a 1989 Boston University graduate with a marketing degree, says the Hub is fertile territory for Boston Commonwealth. Boston, he says, ''is a top 10 market. There's a huge amount of retail taking place," he says. ''We're not looking to challenge what's in the marketplace [but] to complement what's out there."

Niche's other publications -- Los Angeles Confidential, Aspen Peak, Gotham, and Hamptons -- are slick, thick publications chock-full of ads, photos, and coverage of beautiful homes, clothes, and people. They're aimed at an affluent readership with sophisticated tastes. According to Niche Media's promotional materials, 53 percent of Aspen Peak readers own a second home, 55 percent of Hamptons readers have more than $1 million in investments, and 80 percent of Los Angeles Confidential readers drive a luxury vehicle. The company is also planning a September rollout of a Washington, D.C., magazine called Capitol File.

The magazines' publication schedules vary; much of the circulation is generated through targeted distribution to wealthy residents and high-end service and retail establishments. In Boston, Binn says, circulation targets will be set at nearly 70,000; distribution sites will include major hotels, restaurants, clubs, and even private jets. It will also be mailed to homes valued at more than $1 million and to households with incomes of more than $250,000.

Binn says Boston Commonwealth will be a ''celebration of the people and the places of the community."

But they're not celebrating at CommonWealth.

''It's really a risk to our reputation," Bowles says. ''Any criticism of the new magazine could be associated with us in a negative way."