Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Urgent: New York Times passes USAT in circulation

That's according to ABC's just released newspaper circulation figures for the six months ended March 31. The key numbers compared to a year ago, which include print and digital:
  • The Wall Street Journal: 2,378,827, up 12.3%
  • New York Times: 1,865,318, up 17.6%
  • USA Today: 1,674,306, down 7.9%
The data show the continued role of digital editions and subscriptions via paywalls in upending the rankings. Both the WSJ and NYT have paywalls; USAT doesn't. Total digital:
  • WSJ: 898,102
  • NYT: 1,133,923
  • USAT: 249,900
ABC's figures are limited to the top 25 daily and Sunday. The other Gannett title on the dailies list is The Arizona Republic (ranked No. 20): 293,640, down 8.7%. 

On Sundays, The Detroit Free Press is No. 6 with 708,114 (up 6%). And the Republic is No. 13 with 542,274, up 0.7%.

GCI has been focusing on building Sunday for some time. As print editions are dropped, Sunday will no doubt be the last to go.

Related: ABC's data for prior periods.

32 comments:

  1. MASSIVE FAILURE!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I still like reading the Sunday print editions. The rest of the week I could easily do without. The numbers still appear to reflect that preference.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Gee, I didn't see this mentioned in Maryam's "On the Road" e-mail this morning.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Proof that people are still willing to pay big bucks for government propaganda and right-wing talking points.

    FWIW the ABC that Jim refers to is now called AAM, the Alliance for Audited Media. Their company logo and web address reflect that name change which was made last year.

    ReplyDelete
  5. USA Today has continually shot itself in the foot for 5-6 years, so losing its No.1 status is not surprising. Heck, USAT probably won't be in the top 10 by the end of the decade.

    As a result of its crimes against its own employees, USAT lost its soul and now is losing its readers. That's the way it goes in business. The betrayal and mistrust starts from within and then spreads to the product, before finally driving away customers.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Below is Kramer's take on the decline. He might have a point in how it is counted. However, what the management never says is that digital doesn't bring in any revenue even if the numbers using the app is rising. We make our money on ads in the paper. And spin all you want, but this is a wonky setup.

    Dear Colleagues:

    Circulation numbers have been in the news today and I wanted to share some thoughts on where we are. We understand that consumers’ news consumption habits have changed and we are changing with them. As expected, USA TODAY has seen another decrease in our print circulation numbers as reported by the Alliance for Audited Media (AAM), formerly the Audit Bureau of Circulation. The spokesperson for the AAM expressed to media himself that their report does not accurately reflect the full picture anymore. In fact, USA TODAY’s readership in total across all platforms is growing dramatically.

    In regard to digital, our business model is different than our competitors. We are an advertising-driven business that continues to offer free content to our customers for broader access. And if you look at numbers that more accurately measure digital audiences, we are ahead of the competition. We have an audience of more than 50 million while NYT is under 48 million and Wall Street Journal is under 25 million. (And let it be noted that NYT includes the Boston Globe in these numbers while WSJ includes Marketwatch and AllThingsD, so we are even further ahead).

    So the good news is that our strategy is working. We’ve seen increased traffic to our newly redesigned website and through our mobile offerings. USA TODAY now has two of the leading free news apps on iTunes and Kindle, frequently sitting in the number one spot. Our strategy continues to evolve and we’ll always look at new ways to grow the business in the digital space -- as evidenced by our partnership with Hilton Worldwide via USA TODAY The Point. This type of paid partnership, which is gaining a lot of traction, allows all Hilton hotel customers to access our content through the hotels’ guest Internet portals.

    The even better news is that these new platforms help our commitment to building a larger, more engaged audience. And, our continued laser-focus to build best in class products and content will keep them coming back. This, in turn, will enable us to see increased growth over the next several years.

    So, although the numbers announced today are the legacy industry standard, we are continuing to break the mold. Our indicators are very positive and I am confident that we are moving in the right direction.

    Best,
    Larry

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 50 million what?

      Gannett claims its company-wide data as follows, according to regulatory filings:

      "Gannett reaches 54.6 million unique visitors monthly or about 24.7% of the U.S. Internet audience, as measured in December 2012 by comScore Media Metrix, via web sites supported by industry-leading platforms, including CareerBuilder.com, the nation’s top human capital solutions site, USATODAY.com and USA TODAY Sports Digital Properties."

      Kramer's figures would mean all the rest of Gannett -- including mammoth CareerBuilder -- had fewer than five million uniques.

      Delete
    2. Spin it how you want Larry-it's putting lipstick on a pig. Cutting the experienced staff and replacing them with glorified interns is a recipe for a crash and the numbers show it. Enjoy being No. 2 - you'll drop farther.

      Delete
    3. 5:54 PM - "Kramer's figures would mean all the rest of Gannett -- including mammoth CareerBuilder -- had fewer than five million uniques."

      Uh, no. You have no way of knowing from the cited statement what the nonduplicated unique count would be for any given permutation.

      Delete
    4. Kramer mentions that even the spokes person from the AMA admits their numbers don't fully reflect the full picture anymore. That is some spin of the truth by Kramer. The AMA spokes person was referring to the exceptions they were making for papers that no longer deliver a daily paper five days a week. I can't see how that comment has any thing to do with USA today and other Gannett papers drop in circulation.

      Delete
    5. Isn't this also the first time in decades that USAT is no longer the number 1 in print circulation? Up until now, we have been able to claim number one in total print circulation, but now WSJ has overtaken USAT in total print circ as well.

      Delete
    6. You are correct. It's no longer No. 1 overall, or even No. 1 in print.

      I suppose USAT might try to claim "most widely read newspaper online," but that might not be as easy as it sounds.

      Delete
  7. Hmmm...he didn't say that the numbers grew to 50-million.

    ReplyDelete
  8. GPS is still a failed strategy. Circulation declines are within expectations? Why are most other papers growing circulation numbers faster than Gannett papers? Is the strategy to lose circulation in order to get people to look at USA today online for free? This company slays me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Exactly. When you outsource the delivery of your product to the competition, this is the end result. They have no interest in selling more product, and it shows. Just 6 months ago, part of our area had an award winning USA Today District Manager, a group of wholesalers with no turnover, few complaints, and steady sales. In comes an often mentioned manager who cans the DM and merges delivery with a local outside of Gannett. The end result, 2 days in the past 3 weeks where not 1 newspaper was delivered at all, leading to thousands of dollars in writeoffs due to non delivery, subscription cancellations due to service issues, and lost sales due to inconsistent delivery. Hundreds of boxes sit empty, stores are complaining due to less profit per copy, the entire operations has turned to crap, but hey, Gannett's saving a few bucks.

      GPS sure has cut costs, but look at the end result. Anyone with an ounce of sense could see this coming.

      Delete
  9. This is a numbers game meant for industry wonks - now. The only number that really matters is revenue and profit to show the health of a property. The increases in print for some rare few can happen, but the overall fall is still real, hidden by "this may be down but this is up" comments.
    Getting our advertisers results through an emotional or strategic purchase is what matters. They will buy print or digital at any size if it delivers. We can't claim the "I'm the big dog" in town label anymore and no one really cares. Our prices may have to come down, and we'll have to make up the losses with volume (numbers) of advertisers.
    Our most serious issue isn't print decline either... it is the loss of local advertisers who do mention a decline in quality and their own use of our products.
    You can pay me now, or pay me later if we don't spend some time on trust and relationships.
    Ad directors do need to play golf with decision makers. Editors do need to belong to civic organizations. Publishers do need to look the part and be seen at community events and pour some revenue back into local happenings. Reporters need to exhibit excitement covering day-to-day coverage as well as their chance for a Pulitzer and the digital and print delivery systems need to be reliable and stable. Ad reps should not be in the building.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Communities don't care anymore partly do to the fact that Gannett doesn't care about it's customers and what they want and has let go of employees that had contact with those retailers. I won't go over it again but management at the top needs to get their head out of their rear ends.

      Delete
    2. I agree with most of that, 6:52. Except that the AAM/ABC #'s are very noticed across standard ad agencies and media buying entities. And, sales reps talking to those buyers and advertisers will increasingly have to spin harder the story of 'down but up' into a 'stick with us please' agreement. Obviously, those buying conversations were easier when circ was much higher. So, to dismiss the impact of the numbers announcement is naive.

      Sure, I'll buy Kramer's argument that good stuff is happening on other, non-AAM-reported mediums, and that USAT is evolving - to a point. Lots of those day-to-day buyers and agencies don't give a hoot for that, and just want to hear raw numbers for buying decisions. And, when Kramer mentions that 50million users figure - and dismisses NYT and WSJ for including ancillary properties - isn't he ignoring that our 50million number includes OUR ancillary properties? USAT includes Sports Media Group - which is Big Lead, MMA HSS, etc, not to mention Gannett. So...I encourage some investigation into what Kramer's pitching. He doesn't give #'s on that increased website / mobile traffic, which would have been reassuring.
      I also take issue with his 'best-in-class content' claim. Really?

      Delete
  10. Kramer and Callaway are first class hypocrits.

    ReplyDelete
  11. To 6:52 ......Kudos.One of the most honest and concise comments in months.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Love the comment. But - concise? Really - love the sound of my own voice...

    ReplyDelete
  13. Watch out!

    USA Today drops another notch in circulation - now behind the NYTimes.

    Such great performance surely must mean another BIG BONUS for the leaders of this company.

    ReplyDelete
  14. "So the good news is that our strategy is working."

    That's a third place strategy! So when the circulation numbers for USA Today slip to 4th or 5th, another memo will come out saying "So the good news is that our strategy is working."

    Gee, I'm glad decreasing circulation is such good news - could have fooled me!

    ReplyDelete
  15. What's the big deal? We've gotten proven pros in charge. All they have to do is figure out how to monetize the product. How about selling some stuff via Itune. Best of Al's columns. Musings by Michael Wolff. On the Road with Maryam with This Girl's On Fire.


    ReplyDelete
  16. The drop in circulation is all over the news today. I don't think the television stations are getting Kramer's message. When I hear it all over the news on TV it makes me realize I shouldn't be reading USA Today because the NYT and WSJ are better so guess what? I'm dropping my subscription and changing.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Wow - so sad #3 - no one wants to be #3.... I remember when it was scary to think we might be #2.... Looks like all the new talent has done a great job.... how are we rewarding them now...

    ReplyDelete
  18. USA TODAY....we try harder. Just not as hard as the guys ahead of us.

    ReplyDelete
  19. #3 will soon turn into #4 and #5 and #6 and #10 and after that, USA TODAY will not be in business. That's the trend line. Usa Today is too late at the digital sub party. The train has left the gate and now they are standing there trying to spin a 50Million user number that's obviously loaded.

    NYT: 1,133,923
    WSJ: 898,102
    USAT: 249,900

    USAT is 648,202 subs behind WSJ. It is absolutely NUTS to think they will make up that ground even when WSJ and NYT flattens out.

    Good luck selling those worthless banner ads that NO ONE clicks on!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Why is it so surprising that USA Today's circulation dropped? All Gannett products stink. It's simple: Crappy product equals lower circulation numbers (and more layoffs) as the company looks to save money because of a drop in revenues.

    ReplyDelete
  21. This is going to hurt USA TODAY editorial big time across the board. So many of the paper's "scoops" for the last decade or so were give-ups. Somebody would give a reporter a press release a day in advance BECAUSE they were the biggest circulation paper. The paper would announce it the next day. The press release would come out a couple of hours later.

    This means trouble. From now on, these easy scoops are going to go to the WSJ and NYT first and second. USA TODAY will the one catching up. With a shrinking, utterly demoralized staff of editors and reporters who've watched in horror as the new managers in SPORTS degraded and humiliated their colleagues, how are they going to react?

    Will USAT's depressed skeleton editorial crew be able to compete with WSJ and NYT? Doubt it. Instead, look for "aggregation" (eg picking up stories from competitors) and more "attitude" like we're seeing in SPORTS. Will readers and advertisers go for that? Doubt that too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "With a shrinking, utterly demoralized staff of editors and reporters who've watched in horror as the new managers in SPORTS degraded and humiliated their colleagues, how are they going to react?" I get USAT Sports at least once a day stating" Due to unforseen circumstances this event has been cancelled". Really? The game didn't happen? or you didn't pay the photog for the last shoot? My money is on the latter.

      Delete
    2. Huh? What does that mean, 8:32? What events are you talking about? Outdoor events are often canceled because of the weather.

      Translate to English and repost.

      Delete

Jim says: "Proceed with caution; this is a free-for-all comment zone. I try to correct or clarify incorrect information. But I can't catch everything. Please keep your posts focused on Gannett and media-related subjects. Note that I occasionally review comments in advance, to reject inappropriate ones. And I ignore hostile posters, and recommend you do, too."

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.