Print circulation of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age are declining but digital edition sales are strengthening, with the SMH increasing almost 1000% year-on-year (YOY) for March, according to Fairfax’s second monthly audience report.
The multi-platform Fairfax Metro Media Audience Report (FMMAR) has revealed digital edition sales of the SMH have jumped by 997% from Monday-Friday, 1877% on Saturdays and 1290% on Sundays. The SMH digital editions have seen sales of 30,916 for the Monday-Friday editions during March, 36,166 on Saturdays and 37,903 on Sundays.
The Age, for which there is no 2011 data, sold 10,741 digital editions Monday-Friday during March, 10,797 on Saturdays and 10,804 on Sundays.
In contrast, print edition sales of both mastheads continue to decline, with SMH sales falling 17% on weekdays, 16% on Saturdays, and 15% on Sundays for The Sun Herald. The Age's has seen a 16% sales drop on weekdays and a 12% fall on Saturdays, while The Sunday Age sales have fallen by 13%. Readership remains relatively steady for both papers.
FMMAR results also show large increases in audiences via tablet and mobile app downloads and the web. Daily unique browsers visiting the SMH and Age mobile sites are up by 92% and 77% respectively. Monthly page views have also increased, with the SMH mobile site seeing 87% more traffic and The Age seeing a 93% jump.
Downloads of the mobile phone apps grew by more than 700% for both mastheads.
The tablet apps for both papers have no 2011 data, but app downloads come to 248,739 for the SMH and 217,630 for The Age to date.
Of the results, Fairfax Metro Media chief executive Jack Matthews said: “These figures show how crucial it is for advertisers to ensure Fairfax Metro Media mastheads are an integral part of their media campaigns if they want to engage with Australia's most affluent, smart and discerning audiences.”
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