News Limited has once again trumped Fairfax in the newspaper print circulation figures for the June quarter, but pundits have suggested this is largely a result of the two companies’ radically different digital strategies.
ABC Print Circulation figures for June quarter.
ABC Masthead figures for June quarter.
According to the latest Audit Bureau of Circulations figures for the three months to June, the total metro newspaper market saw a drop in print circulation of 6.7%, with all but one title seeing declines. West Australian Newspapers’ The West Australian was the only paper to see growth, at 0.2%.
News Limited saw an overall drop in circulation of 4.4% year-on-year, while Fairfax publications fell 14.1% in total. The largest drop nationally was seen by Fairfax’s The Sun-Herald, which fell 18.7%.
Fairfax has been telling the market for some time it will move its print circulation down as it invests more heavily in its digital suite, with a focus on more ‘holistic’ audience figures that include online and mobile.
Fairfax Metro Media remains the only metro newspaper publisher to submit a combination of print, digital and package figures to the Audit Bureau’s new Masthead metric, which kicked off in the March quarter and is now in its second round of reporting.
Masthead sales for June show quarter-on-quarter drops for Fairfax’s The Sydney Morning Herald weekday and Saturday editions, The Sun-Herald and The Sunday Age, but growth for The Age weekday and Saturday editions.
News Limited is yet to submit Masthead figures.
UM chief executive Mat Baxter said the vast differences in Fairfax and News Limited print circulation figures are due to differences in strategy. “It’s a matter of public record. Fairfax is shifting its focus into digital, while News is standing behind print. News is still investing in digital, but is saying both print and digital are at its core,” he said.
Foundation managing director Martin Patton had a different point of view: “I think News Limited’s circulation looks better because News has a broader appeal. News Limited has had strong exposure in the national digital space for longer than Fairfax but we aren’t seeing the same declines in News Limited’s overall print numbers.”
In print sales, Fairfax’s strongest performer for the period was The Australian Financial Review weekday edition, which dropped 3.7%. News Limited’s strongest performer was Adelaide’s Advertiser, which dropped 0.6%.
Meanwhile, newspaper inserted magazines fell 7.5% overall for the period, with Fairfax the hardest hit.
This article first appeared in the 10 August 2012 print edition of AdNews.
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