Independent Claims Tabloid Times Has Not Effected Sales
The Independent claims that News International’s decision to launch a second tabloid broadsheet in the form of the new compact Times has had little effect on its circulation.
The paper’s editor, Simon Kelner, said the tabloid Times had not eaten into sales despite appearing on news-stands just weeks after The Independent became the first to launch a downsized version for commuters in the London metropolitan area (see Independent Reveals Details Of Tabloid Launch).
Commenting on industry estimates that The Times is up by 25,000 copies a day, Kelner told the Press Gazette: “As long as the effect on our paper is so small I’m quite happy for it to sell as many as it wants – let a thousand flowers bloom.”
The Times has declined to reveal any details about sales since it launched the tabloid version last month. However, reports suggest the compact edition is selling somewhere in the region of 50,000 a day, leading to an overall rise in circulation of around 4% (see Times Announces Launch Of Tabloid Edition In London).
The latest ABC figures for November are inconclusive given that the compact Times launched at the very end of the month. However, the data reveals an 1.4% month on month decline in circulation for the broadsheet title, which appears to be bearing the brunt of the malaise gripping the sector (see ABC National Newspaper Round-Up – November 2003).
However, The Independent has been boosted by the launch of its tabloid edition and ABC figures for the same period show that the title has seen circulation increase by 2.1% month on month to just above 240,000, up from 235,491 in the previous month.
ISBA recently warned that the launch of tabloid-sized versions of existing broadsheet newspapers carries a potential sting for advertisers, which are having to fit the bill for reformatting the layout and type size of broadsheet ads that need to be scaled-down so they work in the new compact size (see ISBA Warns Of Tabloid Sting For Broadsheet Advertisers).
Independent: 020 7005 2000 www.independent.co.uk News International: 020 7782 3922 www.newscorp.co.uk
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