Latest ABCs Show Few Highlights For Music Sector

The latest circulation figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) show few highlights for consumer music magazines. Year-on-year the sector fell 9.8% from 1,831,233 (Jul-Dec 98) to 1,652,254. All of the main publishers in the sector suffered heavy losses on leading titles. EMAP’s Select, Sky and Smash Hits titles fell 21.4%, 24.2% and 18.1% (respectively), year-on-year.

This was partially compensated, however, by the encouraging performance of Mixmag and Mojo, which recorded respective rises of 9.9% and 6.8%. In contrast, IPC stablemates NME and Melody Maker fell 16.1% and 20.4% on their corresponding July-December 1998 figures. This comes in the wake of IPC’s recent restructuring of its Music & Sport division (IPC Restructures Music Titles Management).

Only one of Future Publishing’s music titles – the specialist drums & percussion magazine, Rhythm – recorded a year-on-year rise in circulation. All other titles incurred significant losses, including Future’s recently acquired titles Hip Hop Connection (Magazine Brief) and Metal Hammer (Future Acquires Four New Titles From Dennis).

As for individual performances, Ministry‘s 35.9% rise to 83,486 copies sold and Uncut‘s latest peak of 10,053 outshine all others. Uncut‘s Jul-Dec 99 figure marks a year-on-year rise of 25% and 39.2% from its Jan-Jun 1998 figure of 36,067 (Music Magazines’ Circulations Continue To Fall).

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