Magazines’ Newsstand Sales Fall 9.1 Percent

Magazines’ newsstand sales plummeted in the last six months of 2009, and subscriptions dropped as well.

Newsstand sales for the 472 consumer titles in the United States measured by the Audit Bureau of Circulations declined 9.1 percent, to 39.3 million, in the last half of 2009 versus the same period a year earlier, the organization reported this morning. That follows an 11.12 percent decline from July through December 2007 compared to July through December 2008.

Some of the well-known titles with dramatic single-copy declines included W, down 41.7 percent to about 25,000 for an average issue; Newsweek, down 41.3 percent to about 62,000 (Newsweek had decreased the number of copies on sale, noted a spokesman); SmartMoney, down 37 percent to about 26,000; Time, down 34.9 percent to about 90,000; Good Housekeeping, down 30.7 percent to 395,000; and Redbook, down 30.1 percent to 126,000.

Newsstand sales tend to be driven by the economy and are a more timely indicator of a magazine’s vitality than subscriptions, which tend to lag and which can be driven by heavy discounting. While newsstand sales are a small percentage of most magazines’ circulation, they are a profitable part of it — publishers typically charge only a fraction of the newsstand price for a subscription copy.

Overall circulation, including subscriptions, fell 2.23 percent. There were some bright spots. A magazine called Off-Road Adventures had the highest percentage increase, with overall circulation rising 483 percent — however, it was starting from a very low base of a 40,611 circulation.

Other popular titles that saw spikes were Rodale’s Women’s Health, which rose 21.5 percent, from 1.2 million to 1.45 million. The Disney magazine FamilyFun rose 16.7 percent, from 1.9 million to 2.2 million circulation. And Time Inc.’s People StyleWatch, which had been one of the few titles to post a big ad-page increase, also saw a circulation bump of 8.6 percent, rising to 803,000 circulation.

Among the 25 biggest magazines, the largest circulation drops were at TV Guide Magazine, which was sold for a dollar to a private-equity firm in 2008. Circulation there declined more than a quarter, to 2.4 million. Reader’s Digest, which is in the midst of a bankruptcy filing and is cutting the circulation it guarantees advertisers to 5.5 million, fell 13 percent to 7.1 million. And Prevention declined 13.2 percent, to 2.9 million.

The filings also provided intriguing figures about magazines that have been in the news recently. National Geographic Adventure, which announced it was ceasing publication in December, had a rise in newsstand sales of 1.5 percent, although overall circulation fell by 8.9 percent. Harper’s Magazine, where the editor Roger Hodge was dismissed a few weeks ago, saw a decline in newsstand sales of 28.5 percent and an overall circulation drop of 7.2 percent. Bloomberg BusinessWeek, which is undergoing a makeover from new owner Bloomberg L.P., had a newsstand-sales drop of 26.1 percent along with a slight drop in overall circulation.

And Bon Appetit, which was expected to benefit from sister publication Gourmet’s closing, declined both on newsstand sales (down 9.1 percent) and subscriptions (down 6 percent). However, Frederika Brookfield, a spokeswoman, said Gourmet was only closed with its November issue. As of January 2010, Bon Appetit’s circulation increased 15.4 percent, to 1.5 million, which will be reflected in the next Audit Bureau period.