The Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) has begun an investigation into “apparent irregularities” in the circulation claims of three Trinity Mirror titles. The Birmingham Evening Mail, the Birmingham Post and the Sunday Mercury have been suspended from the audit reports until the inquiry is complete.
The Trinity Mirror group, which merged in September (see Trinity-Mirror Deal Gets ‘Unconditional’ Go-Ahead), released a statement to the Stock Exchange today which stated that a “systematic” attempt to overstate the circulation figures for the Birmingham titles had been discovered. It is believed that the irregularities have caused sales of the papers, which are all published by Birmingham Mail & Post Limited, to be inflated for a number of years.
It is believed that the company wanted to maintain its position as the largest regional group in the country. Trinity Mirror is understood to be offering up to £20 million in claims to advertisers who feel that they have been misled.
The ABC will issue a further statement upon completion of its investigations and has suspended the audit of the titles until then.
Trinity Mirror: 0171 293 3000 Audit Bureau of Circulations: 01442 840 800
Media Jobs
Hello. We have downloaded cookies on your device. Some of these cookies are essential for the website to function. Others are non-essential and are used for analytics and advertising.
We need your consent for these types of cookies.
To withdraw your consent or change your cookie choices, please do this through your browser settings.
Otherwise, click OK to accept and continue.
