Cosmo website to get glossy makeover

Cosmopolitan.co.uk: aiming to attract 500,000 unique users a month
The National Magazine Company is to relaunch Cosmopolitan magazine's website with a host of new features, including online video service Cosmo TV, with the aim of tripling visitor numbers within a year.
Cosmopolitan's online relaunch is earmarked for April 1, although it is expected that a "soft" version of cosmopolitan.co.uk will go live later this month.
The Cosmo website currently attracts around 176,000 unique users each month and the goal of the new-look website is to attract 500,000 within a year of relaunch.
A key development will be the launch of an online video channel, featuring a mixture of clips from "red carpet" events and shows as well as video made in-house by NatMags.
Duncan Edwards, the chief executive of NatMags, said that most of the content on Cosmo TV would be made in-house - including "How to…" videos such as a hair and makeup masterclass with Cosmopolitan staff. Some video content will also be acquired or licensed.
Edwards added that NatMags had looked at getting content from a third party such as VideoJug, but had decided to build its own capability in this area.
A key aim of the relaunch is to combine a better experience for readers as well as providing advertisers with new opportunities.
Cosmo TV will open the door for Hearst Digital, the new media arm of Nat Mags, to sell a range of premium-priced advertising around videos.
Stuart Flint, the Hearst Digital sales director, said that the company would offer ad options around Cosmo TV content including sponsorship, pre-roll ads, ad-funded programming for the service and, in the future, in-video ads.
The website will have a range of channels, which are also open for sponsorship, including Love and Sex, Men, Your Life and Fashion and Style.
Cosmopolitan.co.uk will also be developed to use technology platform provider Pluck to ramp up community elements including blogging and uploading user-generated content.
Following the relaunch of Cosmopolitan.co.uk, Hearst Digital will set about ramping up Allaboutyou.com, the portal for content from magazine titles House Beautiful, Coast, Prima, Good Housekeeping, Country Living and She.