ABC announces press circulation winners and losers (mainly losers)
ABC announces press circulation winners and losers (mainly losers)Dundee evening paper the Evening Telegraph was the only regional daily to record increased sales in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland according to the latest Audit Bureau of Circulations figures published today.
Meanwhile, the Belfast Telegraph was the worst performing daily, with a 13.2% drop in circulation over the six month period.
SCOTLAND
DC Thomson-owned Evening Telegraph increased its circulation by 3.4% year-on-year in the second half of 2010, up to 23,331, managing a 0.3% increase period-on-period.
The Aberdeen Press & Journal, also owned by DC Thomson and the largest of all Scottish regional dailies, fell by 3.5% year-on-year to 72,767, a 2.3% period-on-period fall.
The biggest fall in Scotland was by Newsquest's Evening Times, with the Glasgow paper dropping 8.6% year-on-year and 4.6% period-on-period, down to 54,255.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Independent News & Media title the Belfast Telegraph suffered the biggest circulation drop, falling 11.7% year-on-year to 58,491 - a fall of 13.2% in the six months to December.
WALES
Trinity Mirror's South Wales Echo’s sales dropped 4.7% in the second half of 2010, an 8.7% year-on-year decline down to 33,725.
Welsh Trinity Mirror stable mate The Western Mail dropped 7% in the six months to December, down 8.8% year on year.
And finally, The Leader in Wrexham, Flintshire and Chester, owned by North Wales newspapers, lost 5% in the final six months of 2010, down to 17,530, a 4.6% fall year-on-year.
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This does seem to suggest a relentless downward trend. What these papers really need to survive is the one thing they won't get: Investment. Johnston, Newsquest and Trinity have forgotten that great contents still sells newspapers.
The regional press aint dead yet. Just because the giant conglomerates are struggling to service the debts - built up by a frenzied acquisition binge - and will ulitmately go out of business, the newspapers they have bought won't. Hopefully they will fall into the hands of local companies who will put their products and community ahead of pure profit. In the boom years Johnston looked for a margin of 40%. Smaller publishers, who are in it for the long term, would be quite happy to get a margin of 10%.
Well done to the Dundee Telegraph. But they must be a bit nervous at the Evening Times. They can't lose 8.6% a year for too many years before they paper becomes unviable.
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