PMB/NADbank release final readership studies

Print measurement organizations NADbank and PMB have released the final readership study for magazines and newspapers under their old guise. A new single-source readership study that will provide data on a print brand’s total footprint has been in field since January, with the first quarterly release scheduled for July.

NADbank and PMB merged in October as a single entity that will serve more than 500 members with one study measuring both print and digital. A new name for the organization will be introduced next month.

Former M2 Universal president Sara Hill joined the new organization as interim president in November. NADBank and PMB’s respective presidents, Anne Crassweller and Steve Ferley, departed the organization early this year after staying on through a transition period.

Based on data collected over a two-year period ending December 2014, the PMB study provides readership data for 79 magazines and five newspapers, as well as generic digital readership. The NADbank study contains readership information for 41 daily newspapers in 18 markets.

The PMB study reveals more than 75% of Canadians have read a magazine in the past three months, though the incidence of reading has dropped 6% in the past five years.

Each individual magazine is read by an average of five people, a number that has remained stable since 2010. Average time spent with each issue increased to 49 minutes from 41 minutes in PMB 2013.

The study also suggests magazines’ reach among Canadians 12-34 is on par with the general population at 77%, as is the number of titles read (2.5 per month). Desired targets, including upper income and managers/professionals, also remain strong readers, the study said.

Canada’s top 10 English titles by readership 12+:

1. Reader’s Digest – 3.9 million
2. Canadian Living – 3.1 million
3. Canadian Geographic – 2.9 million
4. Cineplex Magazine – $2.7 million
5. Chatelaine – 2.5 million
6. People – 2.3 million
7. CAA Magazine – 2.1 million
8. Food & Drink – 1.8 million
9. Maclean’s – 1.8 million
10. Canadian House & Home – 1.6 million

Canada’s top 10 French titles by readership 12+

1. Coup de Pouce – 1.04 million
2. Touring (French and English) – 997,000
3. L’actualité – 846,000
4. Ricardo Magazine – 782,000
5. Chatelaine – 759,000
6. Sélection du Reader’s Digest – 647,000
7. Clin d’oeil – 625,000
8. Elle Québec – 610,000
9. Bel Âge – 574,000
10. Les Idées da ma Maison – 536,000

The Newspaper Audience Databank (NADbank) study, meanwhile, suggests newspaper brands reach more than 70% of Canadians in a typical week, though print readership continues to fall (2% in the past year).

Digital readership has increased more than 40% since 2010, with four in 10 Canadians now accessing content via a digital platform. At the same time, mobile readership in the top 18 markets increased 30% in the past year to more than 1.7 million readers per day.

“There’s a real shift in how Canadians are accessing newspapers,” said Hill. “As print is softening, there’s been an incredible increase in access to newspaper content on digital platforms.”

Hill said the increase is representative of a global trend, citing recent data from Australia’s Enhanced Media Metrics Australia (EMMA) study showing mobile readership in that country increased 14% to more than 3 million users per month, making it the industry’s fastest-growing platform.

In Canada, readers are spending an average of 46 minutes per day with print papers and between 30-40 minutes a day with digital editions. Despite claims to the contrary, the study states Canadians 18-34 continue to read newspapers, with 70% accessing content per week (readership is predominantly digital).

The study also reveals more than 75% of upper-income Canadians ($100,000-plus household income) and managers/professionals read a newspaper each week.

Newspaper readership by market (combined print/digital, Adults 18+, read yesterday)

Toronto

1. Toronto Star – 1.04 million
2. The Globe and Mail – 666,100
3. Metro – 538,900
4. Toronto Sun – 456,800
5. National Post – 331,900
6. 24 Hours – 250,300

Montreal

1. La Presse – 705,500
2. Le Journal de Montréal – 497,400
3. Métro – 326,200
4. Montreal Gazette – 298,600
5. 24 Heures – 210,000
6. The Globe and Mail – 76,100
7. National Post – 28,700

Vancouver

1. Vancouver Sun – 395,000
2. Vancouver Province – 339,900
3. 24 Hours – 224,100
4. Metro – 222,800
5. The Globe and Mail – 187,900
6. National Post – 71,600

The new study is a continuous 52-week study using online research, with a representative panel of 36,000 Canadians 12+. Research began the first week of January.

The new study will provide audience details for both print and digital on a title-specific level for both magazines and newspapers, complemented by consumer data on media and product usage, demographics, lifestyles and attitudes. The organization said the quarterly release schedule would deliver a “timelier picture” of consumer behaviour and market changes.

“We’ll be able to provide publishers, advertisers and buyers with much more information,” said Hill.