Six of Australia’s top 15 magazines increased their print readership over the past 12 months, while 12.5 million Australians aged 14+ read print magazines, according to the latest Roy Morgan Australian Magazine Readership report.
This equals out to 62.9 per cent of all Australians aged 14 and higher– up 2,000 from the previous 12 months ending in September. IVE and PMP print the two highest-read magazines, Coles Magazine and Woolworths’ Fresh magazine, followed by specialist publications across fashion, and automotives.
IVE won the Coles contract from PMP at the start of the year, when IPMG, the printers of Woolworths’ Fresh Magazine, became part of PMP.
The audience reach of magazines is extended to 15,005,000 Australians 14+ (77.8 per cent) when you include magazine reading online.
Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine notes that specialist magazines recorded strong increases in print readership over the past 12 months, saying the biggest advantage established magazines have over digital upstarts is brand trust and name recognition built up over years.
“Magazines have been slower to move to a digital future than their print newspaper counterparts but having a strong digital presence is key to magazines retaining relevance in an increasingly online world.
“Although the broader print industry is under intense pressure in an increasingly digital world, specialist magazines including fashion titles like Frankie, Elle and Vogue Australia, and automotive magazines including Wheels, Street Machine and Fast Fours & Rotaries have all recorded strong increases in their print readership over the past 12 months.
“The strong performance of magazines that cater to audiences interested in specific areas provides an example for other magazines dealing with stagnating readership and struggling to implement a successful cross-platform strategy to grow their digital audiences. The biggest advantage established magazines have over digital upstarts is name-recognition and the brand trust which the magazine has built up over years.
“A majority of over 15 million Australians aged 14+ read magazines whether in print or online in the year to September 2017 – virtually unchanged from a year ago.”
Food and entertainment continues to experience long-term growth, maintaining its position as Australia’s most consumed magazine category, read by 6.1 million Australians, or 30.7 per cent of the population, up 6.3 per cent.
4.420 million Australians, or 22.1% of the population, read at least one general interest magazine (down 1.3 per cent) with the leading titles being National Geographic with readership of 1,048,000 (down 3.6 per cent) and local competitor Australian Geographic with readership of 570,000 (up 0.2 per cent).
In the Business, Financial & Airline magazines category, Qantas Magazine remains the lead title in the category with readership despite dropping 7.7 per cent to of 406,000. Time magazine had the category’s largest year-on-year increase with readership up 2.4 per cent to 340,000 while New Scientist held steady on 376,000, increasing 0.3 per cent.
Among state-based motoring club titles Open Road (NSW) leads, despite readership dropping 8.1 per cent to 1 million, followed Royal Auto (Vic) with 628,000, up 1.0 per cent; Road Ahead (Qld) up 12.5 per cent to 604,000.
Roy Morgan says readership of Mass Women’s magazines has been under long-term pressure but a significant 3.3 million Australians, equal to 16.8 per cent of the population, continue to read titles, despite the category being down 5.6 per cent from a year ago.
Women’s Weekly remains clear category leader with readership of 1.4 million (down 10.3 per cent) ahead of Woman’s Day on 1.2 million (down 3.8 per cent) and New Idea on 1,094,000 (down 4.0 percent).
Roy Morgan says with the withdrawal of major publishers from audited circulation results for magazines last year means its readership results are the only independent measure of magazine performance now available.
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