Newspaper Readership Survey Results

Newspaper Advertising Bureau

MEDIA RELEASE – Newspaper Readership Survey Results

Until Midday Thursday 15th February 2007

The latest Newspaper Readership figures show that Daily Newspapers remain a key medium for connecting with the New Zealand population.

On a typical day 1,622,000 or 50% of New Zealanders aged 15+ will read a Daily Newspaper*. That is 23,000 more readers than for the same period in 2005.

The growth comes predominantly from Metropolitan newspapers which have had significant growth of 23,000 additional readers to 1,123,000 readers on a typical day. Regional newspapers reach 629,000 readers on an average day. Weekly coverage is up year on year to 948,000 people 15+.

The weekly audience for all daily newspapers has also grown. Each week 2,425,000 (75%) people aged 15+ read at least one issue of a daily newspaper, an increase of 61,000 readers compared to 2005*.

This is the first release of readership data based on the reduced survey sample size that was introduced last year. The National Readership Survey in New Zealand now interviews 12,000 people per annum.

Further evidence of the strength of newspapers is illustrated by the year on year growth in readership for key target audiences.

Average Issue Readership 2005 vs 2006
All Daily Newspapers (000s) Jan-Dec 2005 Jan-Dec 2006 YOY Change (000s)
All 15+ 1,599 1,622 +23
Males 15+ 801 807 +7
Females 15+ 798 815 +17
Top 3 Occs 314 332 +18
Socios 1-3 748 761 +13
All 18-49 797 820 +23
All 25-54 800 820 +20
Main HHS 758 783 +25

“Newspapers connect with readers when, where and how they want. The product is evolving beyond pure news into information, entertainment and analysis – it is the ideal medium to reach engaged readers.”
Adam Soldinger, NAB Research Manager

Looking at our own ad industry, newspapers are still a recognised medium of choice for advertisers. The latest advertising revenue figures released by NMR** show that newspaper advertising grew by 5% (+$23M) in 2006 vs 2005 compared to a 2% (-$50M) drop in total media expenditure.

Globally, the power of press continues to grow with more than 10,000 daily newspaper titles now being published, according to the World Association of Newspapers. The WAN World Press Trends survey shows that global newspaper circulation has risen almost 10% and the global newspaper industry is worth US$180 billion.

ENDS

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