Circulation: Mags & Newspapers
March 4, 2011 by Brown Shuga
The Audit Bureau Of Circulation (ABC) released circulation figures for the last quarter of 2010 (Oct – Dec) and these show some interesting facts. I’ve gone through the presentation and would like to share some of the feedback highlighted in the document for those who would like to know how well or badly, our publications are doing…
Here we go…
General:
- Total newspaper circulation has increased by 178 000 copies quarter on quarter, but this is mainly in the free newspaper category.
DAILY NEWSPAPERS
- There is a decline of 7.7% in sales. 120 000 more copies sold during the same time in 2009. This 7.7% was however, a small improvement from Q3 in 2010.
- Copy sales(-8.4%) and subscriptions (-5.1%) both declined and The Sowetan is reported to be the only newspaper reflecting sales below 50% of the cover price. I can never buy Sowetan… I’d rather read it online. Not sure why.
- There was a huge decline in English titles, but Afrikaans and vernacular titles remained stable.
- The Citizen is the only daily that improved (11.8%) and even though Daily Sun went down by 15.81 %, it’s still more than 3 times bigger than Die Son, which is the nearest competitor. It must still bother them though…
WEEKLY NEWSPAPERS
- In total there is an increase of 14% in circulation, compared to a decline of 5.7% for Q3.
- Subscriptions fell by 2% but copy sales increased by 13.3%
Wow, Soccer Laduma just gets bigger and bigger! Please look at the gap between them and Mail & Guardian! Wow.. and M&G should subtract me from the subscription numbers coz I’ve been trying to cancel my subscription for a year now, no luck!
WEEKEND NEWSPAPERS
- 6 newspapers increased, 6 remained static, and 11 declined.
- Circulation by 2.3%
MAGAZINES
- Total magazine sales grew by 10.7% over the same period in 2009.
- 24 titles reported sales below 50% of cover price
- Amakhosi Magazine (+35%) and Fitness Magazine (+26%) showed the highest increases in the Sport/Hobby section.
- Bona (+21.7%), LIG (+11.4%) and Drum (+9%) are doing well but Reader’s Digest continues to decline (-18.7%)
- Top Billing Magazine declined by 42% Tjo! What’s in that magazine anyway… I’ve never been tempted to pick up a copy.
- Auto Trader (-13.8%) and Topcar (-13.7%) showed the largest declines. Guess people aren’t buying cars…
Women’s magazines
- Kuier (+121.9%, all copy sales!), Rooi Rose (+21.8) and Marie Claire (+19.2%) showed the highest increases.
- O, the Oprah Magazine (-20.3%) and Psychologies (-16.3%) showed the largest declines. Who is the O mag editor by the way? Guess she’ll be on her way out too… this ain’t good.
In Conclusion, ABC reports that the magazine category is doing very well but the Daily Newspapers are suffering the most.
All these stats and figures are from the report released by ABC on 24 February 2011.
More details and information on the presentation and t’s available for download on the website www.abc.org.za
Hope I’m not the only one who finds these interesting…
Miss2phly on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 2:41 am
I’m the first one to comment:-) *goes bek to read the article*
Cleo04patra on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 2:56 am
Well i’m not surprised about O and Top Billing… O magazine sucks since Kgomotso stopped editing, and well, there’s nothing in there you won’t find better presented in Destiny or TL.
Top Billing: Who wants to read all the obnoxious crap we actually get to see on the show anyway?? I picked it up once and my word… It fails!!! They were trying something good but haai, ke… Go padile, they must can it!! “Opulent locales”, “Decadent Menus” and “People of exuberant personalities” is just a few of the verbose shit they write in TB mag! I once even read it with the voice-ove guy’s voice in my head… Intense boredom!!!!
Kwaaaaaaa! @ Drum
Kic-S on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 6:08 am
More n more ppl now prefer reading all these publications online cos newspapers arent so interesting anymore. They’l run with only 1 or 2 stories to attract sales.
Zida on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 6:45 am
I do find the stats interesting too.
People love their soccer. The publications seem to be excelling.
Some are shocking. WOW @ Daily Sun. People still buy it knowing the crap that is mostly published there?
I think the current editor of O is Sam Page.
Zida on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 6:51 am
You are so right Kic-S. Why wait for a whole day or week or month or 2 when you can get the info in an instant on the internet. And blogs are their biggest competitors because they break the biggest stories now.
lebza4sh0 on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 7:07 am
I’m actually doing magazine journalism this semester and this is part of the syllabus. Thank you BS for this. Will also help me prepare for my test next week.thanks again tl tl tl
soul sista on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 7:19 am
Hehehe I blame JC for some of the declining newspaper & mag sales. My mom was a newspaper editor for yrs & every time she’s complaining that internet is killing print media but she reads SW online too,tltltl Really, newspapers will only be used for smoking zol in future.
SilentBloggar on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 7:20 am
What does this mean?——–>’24 titles reported sales below 50% of cover price’ and ‘the Sowetan is reported to be the only newspaper reflecting sales below 50% of the cover price’. Is it that phenomenon you were talking about where the magazine or newspaper is given for free but the publishing house reports that as sales? Then revenue doesn’t match the reported sales? Is it or am I confusing my Bantu Educated brain?
GA on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 7:27 am
LOL Cle04patra…well said.
Nompi on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 8:16 am
I have stopped buying magazines, because they cause clutter, and I can never bring myself to throwing them out.
Online reading works for me!
Lady gaga on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 8:19 am
LOL @lebza4shO………..SMH!!!
lebza4sh0 on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 9:21 am
Lol uhlekani LadyGaga?
mbulela on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 9:28 am
Top billing mag should be canned.
They do opulence in a very tacky manner.
O has never been the same since Kgomotso left (or was pushed out).
I am not a fan of Oprah but loved the SA edition of O.
two things tend to be pulling down sales in dailies and weeklies.
The rise of the internet and the quality of journalism in print media.
This is not a phenomenon restricted to Mzansi, it is a global thing.
The days of boom in Print media is long gone.
Buhlebonga on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 9:35 am
Oh wow. My newspaper doesn’t even appear in the top five weekend papers. Not that I expected it to. We are more KZN orientated.
This is very interesting. I do hope they didn’t include the copies that are given away to journalism school’s and people at the airport…
Kodwa I’m happy MC is doing well. They are excellent.
With Playboy coming in April, FHM must be shaking in their girlfriends panties.
GA on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 10:11 am
OffT: Kim K’s song…*smdh*….as bad as Tyra Banks’s songs.
Atleast Paris Hilton’s song was actually not bad.
My friend says at this rate Dr Phill will be relasing a song, singing Michael Buble style…*i died*
posh on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 10:12 am
O mag showing a decline, maybe readers are sick of seeing Oprah’s face…I wonder how her US edition is doing…
Zida “WOW @ Daily Sun. People still buy it knowing the crap that is mostly published there?”
What makes Daily Sun & Sunday Sun this succesful? that would be a question,Sunday Sun is full of sexual content, those advert make me lol and it’s popular.
doesn’t make you wonder how things we consider mediocre in SA seem to generate so much revenue and interest
Generations comes to mind….Zuma comes to mind…that we ‘learned’ people think is mediocre, the ‘masses’ find appealing!
Spice on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 10:14 am
The only mag that I buy is Destiny. Simply because I love Khanyi’s editorial, well written, well researched. May Move for goss’s sake. Others, just a waste of my hard earned money.Well one to Isolezwe and their makerting team, doing well shame.
Spice on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 10:17 am
Oop meant t0 say, maybe Move mag for Goss’s sake and well done to Isolezwe.
Mmaditaba on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 10:43 am
@Spice ,huh?
kakapana on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 11:05 am
Ja, big ups to Isolezwe. Pity their reporters are not reaping the rewards.
I’m a Soccer Laduma fanatic shame, I have ALL the editions in my garage.
mbulela on Fri, 4th Mar 2011 11:05 am
@posh, those questions are worthy of a thesis dissertation.
soul sista on Sun, 6th Mar 2011 4:38 pm
Yippeeeeeeee sabotage failed!!!
I was already worried about going to jcfix (grey house)… *celebrates by drinking Grapetiser*
impartial on Sun, 6th Mar 2011 5:04 pm
Posh Daily Sun & Sunday sun being bought have nothing to do with mediocrity(entirely).
As we all knw SA’s population is made up predominantly of blacks who r the ones who buy these newspapers,& these aren’t the up market tertiary educated blacks(I might b wrong),these are your taxi drivers,domestic workers,ppl who find it easy to read these newspapers.Reason their sales r so high.The majority of the country’s population buy them.
Dark8lord on Mon, 7th Mar 2011 5:17 pm
kwaaaa @ccleo reading with the voice over guy’s voice. I do that sometimes, like when reading a zola interview i read it in the way his voice sounds.