Time’s New (T)issue: Bewkes Saves Millions by Using Thinner Stock

Unbeknownst to advertisers, Time Inc. has been quietly switching from the traditional glossy stock to a cheaper grade, known as supercalendered plus, or SC.

Paper industry sources said that Time Inc. began buying up the thinner stock at the start of the year and had eased it into Time, Entertainment Weekly and Fortune by the second quarter.

Time Inc. is taking it slow, especially with flagship People. As one source said, “Readers generally don’t know the difference, but advertisers do.”