ABC Jan- June 2012 Magazine Update PDF

1. Magazine ABC Results
• Easy Living post an impressive PoP
increase of 22.5% after revamp
•Traditional Women’s Weeklies fare much
better than their less fortunate younger
stable mates.
•TV Listings continue to deliver, maintaining
gold, silver and bronze in Actively Headlines
Purchased figures.
•Motors continue to stall with the
exception of Car magazine.
•Home really is where the heart is, as the
sector yet again enjoys a healthy set of
ABCs.
•Celeb results reveal a falling Star and a
not so happy ending after last year’s fairy
tale wedding.
•Commitment yet again is a problem in the
Men’s market in terms of loyalty and
putting their hands in their pockets!
•Tablet versions of the magazines continue
to grow.
January- June 2012 Figures are Actively Purchased, year on year (YOY) and period on period (PoP)

2. Women’s Monthlies
Managing to maintain its circulation PoP Glamour
remains top of the sector despite a YoY decline of over
12%. Rival title Cosmopolitan has revealed another
disappointing set of figures, declining by 8.2% YoY and
proving its fall behind Woman & Home at the last ABCs
was more than a blip.
Hearst flagship title Good Housekeeping maintains in
second position with a small YoY decline of 5.1%. Both
W&H and GH have held on to the majority of their Jan – June 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
subscriptions YoY, showing that the declines are not Glamour 428,514 +0.2 -12.5
coming from loyal readers. Good Housekeeping 393,147 -8.9 -5.1
Woman & Home 335,101 -7.5 -4.9
Other titles in the more ‘mature’ category have also
shown promising figures. Yours has remained flat, Cosmopolitan 298,221 -6.4 -8.2
however has increased subscriptions by 6% YoY. Red Yours 258,924 -0.8 -1.9
also increased its subs base by 14% despite a decline Red 207,713 -2.4 -2.5
of 2.5%. Easy Living’s revamp and publicity seems to Easy Living 155,624 +22.5 +7.2
have paid off as it boasts an increase of 22.5% PoP! Elle 147,775 -0.7 0
Unfortunately the same cannot be said for younger title Company 139,488 -24.2 -20.9
Company's new look, after posting a double digit
decline.
Aspiration continues to rule, as titles such as Vogue,
Elle and Harpers all maintain their fashionista readers.
Women’s Weeklies
Overall this has been one of the worst hit sectors with
a YoY decline of 11%.
Take a Break maintains its leading position, circulating
more than double that of its closest rival. Publishing
Director Andy Brooks believes this strong position has
been maintained due to investment into the title and
TV advertising throughout the early part of the year.
At the other end of the market, some of the smaller Jan- June 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
titles have revealed that they have struggled in this Take A Break 780,125 -0.4 -2.2
period. Pick Me Up and Love It have posted YoY Chat 356,638 -1.7 -6.3
declines of nearly 20%, continuing the downward That’s Life 302,968 -6.6 -5.1
trend since their launch in 2006. Woman’s Weekly 297,870 -4.6 -3.6
Woman 276,851 +0.2 -1.9
IPC argue that Pick Me Up readers are still loyal, they Best 257,770 -5.4 -6.8
are just picking up the magazine less frequently. They
Woman’s Own 228,339 -3.5 -5.3
have continued to invest in their brands through other
Pick me Up 205,301 -11.9 -18.8
platforms -e.g. Chat Puzzle App. Rather than Tablet, the
Love It! 170,840 -12.7 -18.9
mobile platform is where there is penetration against
this audience.

3. TV Listings
Despite some declines, this genre continues to
present some big numbers. TV Choice leads the way
with an actively purchased figure of over 1.3 million
despite a YoY decline of over 5%. IPC’s What’s On TV
maintains 2nd place with a similar small decline.
Stable mates TV & Satellite Week and TV Times also
posted declines of 4.66% YoY and 8.15% YoY
respectively.
Iconic title Radio Times posted a small decline of
under 4% but continues to circulate well over 850,000 Jan – June 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
copies. Generally RT in particular posts much more TV Choice 1,277,850 -2.0 -5.7
positive results in Jul-Dec figures, so they’ll have their What’s On TV 1,213,566 -3.0 -4.6
fingers crossed for a PoP increase next time.
Radio Times 857,970 -6.5 -3.9
TV Times 264,526 -9.9 -8.5
The winner in this category is Total TV Guide which
posted the only increase (3% YoY) TV & Sat Week 168,282 -2.8 -4.7
Inside Soap 154,220 -1.7 -6.2
This category continues to defy skeptics who suggest TV Easy 148,654 -1.2 -8.3
that with the rise of EPG there is no need for a listings Total TV Guide 121,016 -1.5 +3.1
title. TV Choice, WOTV and Radio Times remain the 3
most Actively Purchased titles of all UK Magazines.
Celebrity Weeklies
An 11% decrease across the sector points to a few issues
here.
Clearly, appetite for celebrity-focussed content isn’t what it
was 2,3,4 years ago – what titles previously banked on in
terms of filling their pages is no longer as attractive and
with it being readily available online this will continue to be
the case.
Add this to the fact that main female purchasers are
considering what they’re buying a lot more – no longer
chucking a copy in the basket without even thinking about it,
but really making a considered approach to how and what
they’re spending. Jan - Jun 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
The Express stable have seen particularly disappointing new 435,417 -13.6 -15.0
results, with both new! and Star dropping circa 71k copies Closer 422,657 -7.4 -6.5
each PoP, and OK! a 25% decrease YoY. However, it is worth OK! 341,187 -8.0 -25.4
noting as a group, they account for 40% of the sectors copy
Star 285,219 -19.4 -29.1
sales, so still have a dominant role.
The waning interest in celebrity as we know it means the Heat 276,151 -10.3 -11.5
titles really need to re-assess what their readers want – why Hello! 260,929 -4.1 -11.9
they would choose to pick up one title over another. However Now 255,199 +1.0 -15.1
with the success of our Olympiads and the interest
Reveal 229,814 -15.9 -24.8
surrounding them, we could see a new phase of celebrity
personalities.

4. Men’s Lifestyle
Shortlist and Sport continue to dominate in this
sector, vastly out-performing the paid-for titles in
this posting.
Showing marginal increases PoP, both have seen
complete reversals in fortunes vs. the rest of the
(paid-for) market –Nuts sees a considerable -21%
drop, FHM -13%, and the normally solid Men’s
Health with a -5% decrease. GQ, usually fairly
stable, sees a -2% decline, however posts a Jan – Jun 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
healthier +4% increase YoY – along with stable
mate Wired, these are the only titles to show a Shortlist 529,010 +0.5 +1.0
bolstered YoY figure.
Sport 305,676 +0.3 -0.2
In terms of actively purchased copies, FHM has
Men’s Health 179,216 -4.6 -1.8
now dipped below the 100k ‘magic’ mark –
offering less than a quarter of Shortlist’s numbers FHM 92,626 -12.7 -21.4
(although they are free) and also decreasing it’s Nuts 85,081 -20.8 -20.9
number of subscription copies – showing loyalty GQ 79,083 -2.0 +3.9
is most certainly on the wane. Stuff 61,573 -12.2 -6.7
Where we’ve previously noted men are ‘getting it Men’s Fitness 59,604 +4.7 -0.9
elsewhere’ in terms of content, the digital Zoo 44,147 -15.2 -14.9
editions are yet to make a real impact – tablet
editions accounting for circa 5-9% of total
circulations in the titles that have offerings here.
Motors
Yet again the motoring category seems pretty much
stuck in reverse with leading title Top Gear suffering
another disappointing decline both PoP and YoY.
Auto Express and sister title EVO have both posted
small declines yet the latter has been able to hold on
to most of its subscriptions.
Car has told the most positive story this period,
posting increases both PoP and YoY. The Bauer title Jan- June 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
also managed to increase subscriptions by over 3%
YoY. Top Gear 188,249 -14.9 -19.9
This sector is probably one of the most at risk from the What Car? 70,678 -5.5% -11.7
dreaded migration to online.- in this case, sites such Auto Express 53,856 -2.4 -3.2
as Auto Trader etc which maintain authority in all EVO 40,065 -3.7 -8.4
things auto. The current economic climate will not
Auto Car 38,274 -3.7 -6.3
help this genre as people put off making large
purchases. It is this ‘dip in, dip out’ readership that Car 32,496 +1.4 +3.7
has fallen out of the market, as loyalty amongst true
car fanatics remains strong.

5. Home Interest
Overall, a fairly stable posting for the sector as a
whole.
Positive results for Country Homes & Interiors, Living
Etc, Elle Deco and Good Homes have balanced the
losses of the traditional titles – Ideal Home, House
Beautiful and Homes & Gardens.
Once again we are seeing a buoyant sector reacting to
the wider economic climate – whether that be Jan – Jun 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
dreaming of escaping to the country, staying put and Ideal Home 176,478 -4.8 -7.6
‘doing up’, or making the most of what you’ve got. Country Living 158,900 +0.2 -4.8
Your Home 124,847 -1.6 -2.4
Kelsey’s Good Homes has capitalised on last period’s House Beautiful 121,718 -4.6 -11.0
increase, building back the base of readers it’s BBC Homes & Gardens 88,276 -4.0 -7.2
owners previously enjoyed, and interestingly, across Style at Home 79.916 +11.3 +52.0
the board all titles have seen a stable posting in their CH & Interiors 78,490 -0.8 +3.9
subscription copies – proving there is a core base of Living Etc 73,410 -3.3 -0.2
Home Interest readers who are staying put. This has Good Homes 69,498 +4.7 +9.4
paved the way for new launch Style at Home, which
Elle Decoration 45,473 +2.7 -3.0
has enjoyed a bumper period (launched Feb 2011).
Customer and Food
Asda magazine overtakes established leader Tesco by
distributing over 30,000 more copies. However Tesco’s
numbers are not to be sniffed at with over 1.9 million
copies. Little sister Real Food also reports a positive
story with a small increase of 0.5% YoY.
In contrast Immediate Media titles- Good Food, Olive,
Easy Cook and Delicious have posted disappointing
numbers. The former BBC titles all posted declines,
with Delicious and Olive plummeting by over 15% each
YoY. Websites and tablet apps seem to be key for this
genre as we embark on an era where would be cooks Jan – June 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
are more comfortable with a tablet in the kitchen than Asda 1,963,201 +0.7 -0.9
a cookbook. Tesco 1,931,673 -4.3 +0.2
Celebrity chef magazine Jamie also posted a decline,
Tesco Real Food 1,223,333 +0.3 +0.5
however has managed to increase subscription sales by
Slimming World 417,868 +4.3 +24.5
23.4% PoP.
Good Food 254,476 -14.3 -8.8
Diet titles such as Slimming World have had a much Weight Watchers 187,127 +2.2 -6.2
more positive story to tell as people got into shape in Delicious 70,296 -16.8 -16.7
the first half of 2012, posting an increase of over 24% Olive 61,133 -21.5 -15.3
YoY, Weight Watchers also increased readers PoP at Jamie 26,677 -19.7 -10.0
2.2%.

6. Music
There’s been little to sing about over the past few
years in this sector, and this period sees little
change.
Some fairly heavy losses for Bauer’s Q and IPC’s
NME at -20% and -14% PoP respectively have
contributed to an overall loss of over 20k copies
across the sector.
The loss sees NME’s current circulation at less
than half it’s number just 4 years ago and now
sees itself at the bottom of the pops, selling
Jan – Jun 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
fewer copies than any other rock title. IPC will
affirm – once again – the future of the brand rests Q Magazine 51,261 -19.7 -18.4
in its extensions and festival tie-ups in order to Mojo 47,020 -6.6 +1.2
keep this brand afloat. Kerrang! 38,403 -5.2 -7.3
Q’s new editor Andrew Harrison will be hoping to NME 21,419 -13.8 -17.7
reverse fortunes in the next posting – having
moved from the now defunct The Word. The loss
of this independent title was a blow to the sector
and confirmed the changing nature of the music
business – with NME currently posting a lower
circulation to that of the final issue of The Word,
it will indeed be testing times ahead.
News & Views
Perhaps one of the most positive stories of this period,
with an overall increase of 2%.
Since the economic downturn, this sector has been
one of the main beneficiaries with the public hungry to
keep up with the ever changing policies that will
influence their everyday lives. Politics has become
something that matters to the every day man rather
than just ‘people in the know’.
Jan- June 2012 P on P % Y on Y %
Private Eye posted some very positive figures,
Private Eye 213,185 -1.3 +9.7
boasting a YoY increase of nearly 10%. Although
figures are flat for the Economist they have managed Economist (UK) 160,910 +0.5 -0.1
to increase their subscription base by +2.5% YoY. The Week 156,846 +3.1 +2.5
New Scientist (WW) 76,271 -3.9 -1.8
2012's winner of 'Consumer Magazine of the Year' at Spectator 38,136 -1.1 +0.3
the PPA Awards The Week boasted a YoY increase of Monocle 12,039 -6.6 -3.8
2.5% and its new distribution partnership with
Raconteur Media, should help to boost their figures
even further.

7. Tablet/Digital Editions
Tablet editions are starting to demonstrate the power
of UK magazine brands.
We currently have just under 60 magazines posting
Tablet/Digital Circulations, accounting for just under
2% off the total circulation.
This figure naturally improves as you move up the
chart – Top 20 (see below) accounting for just under
5% of all circ and Top 10 with almost 7%!
The up-take of tablet versions has largely been seen
in high interest sections - Health/Fitness, Technology,
Fashion and Home Interest, with the top 3 titles being
Health & Fitness (11.7%), Total Film (10.5%) and
Esquire (8.7%).
The publishers leading this are currently Dennis,
Future, Conde Nast and Hearst.
We would expect more publishers to enter the tablet
market, with imminent launches such as Bauer's
Grazia tablet edition in the autumn.
Analysis of Digital Editions
Total Average Net Total Average Net
Title Circulation/Distribution Circulation (Digital Combined Print/Digital
(Print) Edition) Circulation % Digital
Health & Fitness 25,546 3,389 28,935 11.71%
Total Film 68,897 8,108 77,005 10.53%
Wired 52,136 5,255 57,391 9.16%
Esquire 54,702 5,205 59,907 8.69%
GQ 120,139 9,652 129,791 7.44%
Elle Decoration 70,655 4,846 75,501 6.42%
Men's Fitness 65,201 4,438 69,639 6.37%
Vanity Fair 100,692 6,242 106,934 5.84%
Stuff 76,083 4,326 80,409 5.38%
Men's Health 216,336 12,142 228,478 5.31%
Harpers Bazaar 119,274 6,242 125,516 4.97%
Grand Designs 30,653 1,205 31,858 3.78%
Cosmopolitan 353,413 13,298 366,711 3.63%
Elle (U.K.) 189,568 6,795 196,363 3.46%
BBC Focus 64,625 2,146 66,771 3.21%
The Economist - UK 210,386 6,146 216,532 2.84%
BBC Good Food 267,164 7,346 274,510 2.68%
Women's Fitness 20,717 563 21,280 2.65%
Zest 71,820 1,920 73,740 2.60%
Living etc 98,250 2,267 100,517 2.26%