BBC Magazines Its Hot was launched this week and Emap Elan will launch Sneak, the sister title to its highly successful Heat title, on April 30.

Sneak will be edited by former editor of Attic Futuras Sugar Jennifer Cawthorn. It has a cover price of 90p.

Norwich-based Jarrold Printing will produce an initial print run of 100,000, with the text being produced on its MAN Roland Lithoman and the covers on its Komori 16pp web. The 285mmx210mm magazine will be bound on the companys new Muller Martini Tempo. Jarrold Printing also produces EMAPs Q and Mojo titles.

Jarrold Printing sales and marketing director James Povey said: "We are confident we will continue to prove our abilities in the fast moving time-sensitive weekly magazine arena."

Sneak was supported by a sampling campaign the day after the launch of rival Its Hot on 16 April.

The special 36pp sampler edition was distributed free with copies of J-17 and Smash Hits.

The campaign echoed that for Its Hot, which saw 2.2m 16pp preview editions distributed with the Sunday Mirror and free samples sent out with sister titles Girl Talk and Top of the Pops.

Polestar Watmoughs produces Its Hot, which is priced 1.80, and headed by managing editor Jeremy Mark, who also edited Star. Mark argued that the awareness campaign for Its Hot will ensure that it does not meet the same end as the ill-fated Star.

The pre- and early-teen market has not been served since the BBCs teenage-celebrity title Star closed last October, and the slump in the teenage-music sector in the face of rising popularity of celebrity coverage in magazines.

Although both magazines are apparently competing for the same sector and covering similar subject matter of celebrity gossip, confessions and star photos, the BBC denied that it had launched its title in direct competition with Emap. The latter targets a slightly older audience, it argued.

Story by Anna Clarke