Sun+ doubles subscribers year on year

The Sun has almost doubled the number of paying subscribers for its online platform Sun+ in the last year, according to a report in the Guardian.

Figures released by publisher News UK reveal that Sun+, which went behind a paywall in August last year, currently has 225,000 paying subscribers compared with the 117,000 recorded in December 2013.

News UK explicitly stated that the current subscriber figure does not include any subscribers on a free trial, nor those that get Sun+ through its deal with O2, with the majority paying £7.99 a month.

When Sun+ first put its content behind a full paywall on 1 August 2013, its market share dropped -36% in the first two weeks, according to research from Experian.

However, News UK’s latest figures suggest that Sun+ may be gaining traction, although slowly, with approximately 2% of subscribers having a quarterly or annual package.

While the Sun‘s print edition has seen a gradual decline over the past year, it is still the best-performing paper with an average circulation of a little under 2 million.