Canadian magazine sales down 4.8% in first half of 2014

Illustration courtesy of Eric Mark Do

By Tamara Baluja, Associate Editor

Illustration courtesy of Eric Mark Do

By Tamara Baluja, Associate Editor

Newsstand sales and paid magazine subscriptions were down 4.8 per cent for Canadian magazines in the first half of 2014 compared to the same period last year, according to a report from the Alliance for Audited Media.

While the good news is that digital editions have nearly tripled from the same period in 2013, overall magazine circulation is still down. Of the 56 titles from which data was collected, single-copy sales increased three per cent while paid subscriptions were down 10.1 percent. 

Reader’s Digest Canada saw the largest drop in paid and verified circulation at 28.6 per cent, followed by L’Actualite at 13 per cent. Meanwhile, Sportsnet Magazine grew by 27.5 per cent, followed by Hockey News by 13 per cent and MoneySense at 12 per cent. 

The report noted that wholesaler and distributor Benjamin News closed in March, which might have had an impact on the six-month averages for some magazines. 

Related content on J-Source: