Times Under Fire As Compact Edition Goes National

The Times has drawn criticism over its plans to roll-out its compact edition nation-wide with readers complaining that the broadsheet version is not always available.

A number of readers complained to advertising watchdogs that a national press ad in which the Times claimed it was committed to both editions was misleading because broadsheet version was not always supplied to their newsagents.

The Times defended the ad on the grounds that it continues to print more than 250,000 broadsheets every day and is currently working with the National Federation of Newsagents to assist them in supplying both editions of the paper.

The company also plans to provide point of sale material in newsagents to help readers obtain a broadsheet edition. However, it acknowledged that sales orders for broadsheets had diminished and some retailers refused to stock the traditional format because sales were so low.

The Advertising Standards Authority recognised that the Times had gone to extensive efforts to ensure that both its compact and broadsheets editions were widely available. It also noted that the paper was working with National Federation of Newsagents to resolve any distribution problems. The complaints were dismissed and the Times cleared of any wrongdoing.

Earlier this month Times Newspapers launched a national television campaign to promote its deal with The AirMiles Travel company, offering readers the chance to collect AirMiles tokens and exclusive deals on luxury holidays. The deal will see readers of the Sunday Times and the Times offered AirMiles tokens in the newspapers for the next few weeks (see Times Partners With AirMiles For Travel Promotion).

The Times: 020 7782 5000 www.timesonline.co.uk

Recent Newspaper Stories from NewsLine The Times Builds Job Pages With Career Supplement Telegraph Planning To Launch Tabloid This Month Times Partners With AirMiles For Travel Promotion

Subscribers can access ten years of media news and analysis in the Archive