medialifemagazine.com
Summer chill for consumer magazines
By Lisa Snedeker
Jul 13, 2007 - 9:30:27 AM
It may be a hot summer in many parts of the country but it's looking to be a cool year for magazines, based on ad page sales during second quarter.
Ad pages were down 1.9 percent for the second quarter of the year, to 62,298.49, compared with the same period last year. Year to date, they are down 0.5 percent. That's according to the latest data from the Publishers Information Bureau.
The hurt is being seen across several major categories, including automotive, as the Big Three carmakers continue to shift ad dollars to the internet and trim spending on traditional media. Home furnishings and supplies, technology and financial, insurance and real estate categories saw the most
significant losses.
Automotive ad pages were down 4.5 percent for the first half of the year while home furnishings saw a staggering 15 percent loss and technology was down 13 percent.
Only five of the dozen top ad page categories were up or flat.
The major bright spot in the otherwise gloomy results remains the sustained ad spending of the drugs and remedies category, which saw an 11 percent page growth, ranking No. 1. Food and Products came in second with a 7 percent improvement in ad pages, followed by retail with a 5.6 percent increase.
Among the 23 magazines categories tracked by Media Life, 11 were up and 12 down year to date, meaning no change from the first quarter.
While some individual categories showed strong gains over the first half of this year, others continued sharp declines. Teen magazines continued their downward spiral seeing the greatest losses at 35.6 percent, with the closing of two titles, Elle Girl and Teen People, and the ongoing migration of readers and advertisers to the internet.
Personal finance and business titles also continue to suffer, down more than 10 percent through June, while science and technology titles were down 11.5 percent.
Hispanic magazines declined at 8.7 percent with weekend magazines continuing to decline at 7.7 percent. Parenting, bridal, travel and personal finance were all down around 5 percent.
Interestingly, after several years of declines, newsmagazines were among those seeing an increase in pages at 3.5 percent.
The big gainers were most notably among women’s titles and epicurean.
Women's service and beauty was up 12.2 percent in pages, with every title, including the long-suffering Jane, which despite gains is shuttering after August, showing page gains.
Epicurean was the second-largest gainer at 10 percent, with all but two titles showing strong gains, while entertainment, fashion and women’s service all fell to a close third with around 6 percent gains.
In terms of total dollars, spending for the first half of 2007 was up 6.1 percent, to $11,838,362,224, based on PIB calculations from magazine rate cards before discounting.
|
Automotive
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
AUTOMOBILE MAGAZINE
|
37,283,895
|
31,948,794
|
16.7
|
431.71
|
392.44
|
10.0
|
|
AUTOWEEK
|
21,131,907
|
24,255,733
|
-12.9
|
621.60
|
564.37
|
10.1
|
|
CAR AND DRIVER
|
98,566,899
|
93,213,475
|
5.7
|
522.34
|
519.66
|
0.5
|
|
HOT ROD
|
30,088,418
|
30,969,755
|
-2.8
|
323.62
|
348.28
|
-7.1
|
|
MOTOR TREND
|
85,521,941
|
79,698,813
|
7.3
|
586.78
|
577.69
|
1.6
|
|
ROAD & TRACK
|
60,368,782
|
54,713,193
|
10.3
|
546.06
|
519.55
|
5.1
|
|
Totals
|
332,961,842
|
314,799,763
|
5.7
|
3,032.11
|
2,921.99
|
3.8
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Entertainment/Celebrity
Year to date |
|
Titles
|
2007
$s
|
2006
$s
|
%
chnge
|
'07
pages
|
'06
pages
|
%
chnge
|
|
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
|
106,534,677
|
110,948,701
|
-4.0
|
706.85
|
787.97
|
-10.3
|
|
IN TOUCH WEEKLY
|
64,941,314
|
47,534,804
|
36.6
|
516.86
|
395.19
|
30.8
|
|
LIFE & STYLE WEEKLY
|
21,585,798
|
10,521,058
|
105.2
|
321.53
|
211.77
|
51.8
|
|
PEOPLE
|
456,504,133
|
425,806,102
|
7.2
|
1,812.14
|
1,839.84
|
-1.5
|
|
PREMIERE
|
8,294,165
|
14,115,170
|
-41.2
|
135.81
|
236.63
|
-42.6
|
|
ROLLING STONE
|
95,395,212
|
90,208,774
|
5.7
|
645.78
|
644.39
|
0.2
|
|
STAR
|
100,959,629
|
73,795,824
|
36.8
|
621.34
|
484.75
|
28.2
|
|
TV GUIDE
|
94,602,475
|
68,411,352
|
38.3
|
511.22
|
393.46
|
29.9
|
|
US WEEKLY
|
156,544,020
|
130,515,459
|
19.9
|
983.20
|
912.56
|
7.7
|
|
Totals
|
1,105,361,423
|
971,857,244
|
13.7
|
6,254.73
|
5,906.56
|
5.9
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Teen magazines
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
COSMOGIRL
|
36,992,834
|
39,284,849
|
-5.8
|
349.64
|
395.62
|
-11.6
|
|
ELLE GIRL
|
0
|
19,169,530
|
-100.0
|
0.00
|
387.14
|
-100.0
|
|
J-14
|
3,226,605
|
3,101,674
|
4.0
|
111.90
|
94.44
|
18.5
|
|
SEVENTEEN
|
45,897,394
|
47,526,827
|
-3.4
|
399.74
|
440.09
|
-9.2
|
|
TEEN PEOPLE
|
0
|
25,681,934
|
-100.0
|
0.00
|
302.19
|
-100.0
|
|
TEEN VOGUE
|
44,763,807
|
39,801,338
|
12.5
|
495.39
|
486.24
|
1.9
|
|
Totals
|
130,880,640
|
174,566,152
|
-25.0
|
1,356.67
|
2,105.72
|
-35.6
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Women's service/beauty
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
ALLURE
|
85,140,805
|
70,774,855
|
20.3
|
787.75
|
686.21
|
14.8
|
|
COSMOPOLITAN
|
208,860,880
|
179,836,780
|
16.1
|
932.87
|
850.30
|
9.7
|
|
GLAMOUR
|
163,511,666
|
133,300,497
|
22.7
|
937.19
|
825.06
|
13.6
|
|
JANE
|
18,916,060
|
15,262,877
|
23.9
|
279.74
|
235.09
|
19.0
|
|
MARIE CLAIRE
|
68,202,304
|
59,130,707
|
15.3
|
645.13
|
597.68
|
7.9
|
|
Totals
|
544,631,715
|
458,305,716
|
18.8
|
3,582.68
|
3,194.34
|
12.2
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Fashion
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
ELLE
|
129,040,931
|
110,796,632
|
16.5
|
1,100.18
|
1,009.85
|
8.9
|
|
HARPER'S BAZAAR
|
82,820,318
|
67,214,947
|
23.2
|
813.71
|
720.83
|
12.9
|
|
LUCKY
|
82,179,553
|
70,253,552
|
17.0
|
822.34
|
775.99
|
6.0
|
|
TOWN & COUNTRY
|
63,000,504
|
61,898,448
|
1.8
|
772.11
|
790.37
|
-2.3
|
|
VOGUE
|
172,597,259
|
156,047,274
|
10.6
|
1,322.43
|
1,253.68
|
5.5
|
|
W
|
71,205,150
|
62,334,694
|
14.2
|
893.85
|
821.43
|
8.8
|
|
Totals
|
600,843,715
|
528,545,547
|
13.7
|
5,724.62
|
5,372.15
|
6.6
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Travel
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
ARTHUR FROMMERS BDGT TRVL
|
16,457,302
|
14,212,472
|
15.8
|
388.82
|
361.33
|
7.6
|
|
CONDE NAST TRAVELER
|
80,393,633
|
69,020,805
|
16.5
|
781.99
|
756.30
|
3.4
|
|
DEPARTURES
|
32,267,731
|
31,700,491
|
1.8
|
438.63
|
459.02
|
-4.4
|
|
ENDLESS VACATION
|
5,320,431
|
13,726,314
|
-61.2
|
67.63
|
160.02
|
-57.7
|
|
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRVLR
|
18,330,860
|
13,483,884
|
35.9
|
274.86
|
210.38
|
30.6
|
|
TRAVEL+ LEISURE
|
76,228,955
|
85,256,308
|
-10.6
|
772.96
|
925.36
|
-16.5
|
|
Totals
|
228,998,912
|
227,400,274
|
-.7
|
2,724.89
|
2,872.41
|
-5.1
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
General Interest & Lifestyle
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
AARP-THE MAGAZINE
|
86,684,711
|
79,070,735
|
9.6
|
163.07
|
160.44
|
1.6
|
|
ATLANTIC MONTHLY THE
|
15,354,890
|
13,534,300
|
13.5
|
295.13
|
286.87
|
2.9
|
|
GUIDEPOSTS
|
19,389,217
|
19,074,502
|
1.6
|
245.99
|
253.09
|
-2.8
|
|
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
|
42,577,533
|
40,128,264
|
6.1
|
198.78
|
198.18
|
0.3
|
|
NEW YORK MAGAZINE
|
96,450,520
|
95,857,538
|
0.6
|
1,448.75
|
1,542.35
|
-6.1
|
|
NEW YORKER
|
93,470,799
|
86,907,168
|
7.6
|
832.65
|
832.96
|
0.0
|
|
READER'S DIGEST
|
169,072,261
|
146,746,548
|
15.2
|
552.07
|
494.25
|
11.7
|
|
SMITHSONIAN
|
35,112,910
|
34,149,419
|
2.8
|
267.18
|
278.32
|
-4.0
|
|
SOUTHERN LIVING
|
103,799,588
|
104,566,546
|
-0.7
|
664.69
|
701.52
|
-5.3
|
|
SUNSET
|
45,496,438
|
53,022,541
|
-14.2
|
481.64
|
516.90
|
-6.8
|
|
TEXAS MONTHLY
|
42,063,992
|
39,670,344
|
6.0
|
1,116.54
|
1,089.13
|
2.5
|
|
VANITY FAIR
|
125,879,404
|
103,436,042
|
21.7
|
919.78
|
793.18
|
16.0
|
|
Totals
|
875,352,263
|
816,163,947
|
7.3
|
7,186.27
|
7,147.19
|
0.5
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Parenting
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
AMERICAN BABY
|
50,032,198
|
52,430,754
|
-4.6
|
297.42
|
332.66
|
-10.6
|
|
BABY TALK
|
32,271,172
|
36,569,215
|
-11.8
|
229.94
|
271.52
|
-15.3
|
|
CHILD
|
28,923,235
|
29,877,989
|
-3.2
|
404.64
|
443.05
|
-8.7
|
|
COOKIE
|
11,061,717
|
6,142,410
|
80.1
|
222.71
|
152.10
|
46.4
|
|
FAMILY FUN
|
46,099,036
|
43,745,456
|
5.4
|
318.38
|
315.31
|
1.0
|
|
PARENTING
|
64,704,398
|
74,897,799
|
-13.6
|
427.79
|
545.40
|
-21.6
|
|
PARENTS
|
88,926,950
|
94,020,533
|
-5.4
|
601.25
|
675.33
|
-11.0
|
|
WONDERTIME
|
6,913,991
|
3,410,604
|
102.7
|
206.38
|
139.89
|
47.5
|
|
Totals
|
328,932,697
|
341,094,760
|
-3.5
|
2,708.51
|
2,875.26
|
-5.8
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Personal finance
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
BARRONS
|
32,153,259
|
26,411,009
|
21.7
|
781.07
|
684.73
|
14.1
|
|
KIPLINGERS PERSNL FINANCE
|
18,257,308
|
19,642,617
|
-7.1
|
261.88
|
285.17
|
-8.2
|
|
MONEY
|
65,210,485
|
77,298,033
|
-15.6
|
344.05
|
462.90
|
-25.7
|
|
SMARTMONEY
|
25,132,636
|
26,912,069
|
-6.6
|
310.21
|
353.17
|
-12.2
|
|
Totals
|
140,753,688
|
150,263,728
|
-6.3
|
1,697.21
|
1,785.97
|
-4.9
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Newsweeklies
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
ECONOMIST
|
52,993,388
|
40,640,205
|
30.4
|
1,200.98
|
1,060.25
|
13.3
|
|
NEWSWEEK
|
223,591,165
|
224,336,839
|
-0.3
|
885.05
|
930.88
|
-4.9
|
|
THE WEEK
|
13,005,508
|
10,645,315
|
22.2
|
282.18
|
253.33
|
11.4
|
|
TIME
|
252,497,371
|
295,629,622
|
-14.6
|
1,011.27
|
1,035.69
|
-2.4
|
|
U.S.
NEWS
|
125,790,743
|
113,823,941
|
10.5
|
779.22
|
736.69
|
5.8
|
|
Totals
|
667,878,175
|
685,075,922
|
-2.5
|
4,158.7
|
4,016.84
|
3.5
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Women's Service
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
BETTER HOMES & GARDENS
|
402,091,685
|
366,512,667
|
9.7
|
962.61
|
922.14
|
4.4
|
|
FAMILY CIRCLE
|
191,017,499
|
151,913,801
|
25.7
|
853.87
|
714.89
|
19.4
|
|
FIRST FOR WOMEN
|
20,949,461
|
18,308,024
|
14.4
|
326.07
|
297.10
|
9.8
|
|
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING
|
257,448,762
|
244,980,240
|
5.1
|
821.58
|
841.95
|
-2.4
|
|
LADIES' HOME JOURNAL
|
165,237,192
|
174,504,897
|
-5.3
|
713.17
|
753.18
|
-5.3
|
|
MARTHA
STEWART LIVING
|
89,782,349
|
74,527,129
|
20.5
|
651.84
|
586.56
|
11.1
|
|
MORE
|
65,232,939
|
54,469,773
|
19.8
|
590.49
|
521.42
|
13.2
|
|
REAL SIMPLE
|
132,111,230
|
102,469,358
|
28.9
|
903.07
|
748.62
|
20.6
|
|
REDBOOK
|
106,101,701
|
93,622,985
|
13.3
|
765.98
|
715.23
|
7.1
|
|
WOMAN'S DAY
|
196,939,866
|
220,952,778
|
-10.9
|
835.46
|
933.33
|
-10.5
|
|
WOMANS WORLD
|
14,461,840
|
13,743,915
|
5.2
|
181.64
|
181.49
|
0.1
|
|
WOMEN'S HEALTH
|
20,072,377
|
6,751,649
|
197.3
|
282.65
|
187.63
|
50.6
|
|
WORKING MOTHER
|
14,276,700
|
14,165,372
|
0.8
|
226.47
|
235.57
|
-3.9
|
|
Totals
|
1,675,723,601
|
1,536,922,588
|
9.0
|
8,114.9
|
7,639.11
|
6.2
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Fan Sports
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
ESPN MAGAZINE
|
134,350,806
|
119,691,439
|
12.2
|
692.07
|
667.79
|
3.6
|
|
SPORTING NEWS
|
18,948,158
|
19,861,907
|
-4.6
|
326.78
|
356.37
|
-8.3
|
|
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
|
317,048,714
|
292,579,566
|
8.4
|
971.22
|
957.39
|
1.4
|
|
Totals
|
470,347,678
|
432,132,912
|
8.8
|
1,990.07
|
1,981.55
|
0.5
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Personal Sports
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
BICYCLING
|
20,789,809
|
17,788,477
|
16.9
|
392.94
|
356.65
|
10.2
|
|
GOLF DIGEST
|
93,518,373
|
88,799,258
|
5.3
|
782.65
|
779.76
|
0.4
|
|
GOLF FOR WOMEN
|
15,060,939
|
13,621,924
|
10.6
|
279.45
|
293.60
|
-4.8
|
|
GOLF MAGAZINE
|
86,693,158
|
91,640,476
|
-5.4
|
558.66
|
622.42
|
-10.2
|
|
GOLF WORLD
|
24,259,539
|
20,084,596
|
20.8
|
757.53
|
680.21
|
11.4
|
|
RUNNERS WORLD
|
33,909,980
|
31,167,592
|
8.8
|
347.16
|
341.10
|
1.8
|
|
SKI
|
9,013,513
|
12,234,081
|
-26.3
|
150.88
|
214.94
|
-29.8
|
|
SKIING
|
4,832,403
|
6,410,216
|
-24.6
|
90.23
|
126.91
|
-28.9
|
|
TENNIS
|
15,561,288
|
12,887,577
|
20.7
|
284.99
|
241.59
|
18.0
|
|
TRAVEL + LEISURE GOLF
|
16,506,871
|
15,559,157
|
6.1
|
218.10
|
219.74
|
-0.7
|
|
Totals
|
320,145,873
|
310,193,354
|
3.2
|
3,862.59
|
3,876.92
|
-0.4
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Weekend magazines
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
AMERICAN PROFILE
|
105,366,059
|
76,454,114
|
37.8
|
287.11
|
261.30
|
9.9
|
|
LIFE MAGAZINE
|
37,236,406
|
67,226,305
|
-44.6
|
98.84
|
204.47
|
-51.7
|
|
NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE
|
189,782,971
|
195,120,567
|
-2.7
|
1,707.34
|
1,810.83
|
-5.7
|
|
PARADE
|
311,094,977
|
300,411,793
|
3.6
|
348.62
|
335.11
|
4.0
|
|
RELISH
|
34,472,571
|
13,048,438
|
164.2
|
85.53
|
45.50
|
88.0
|
|
USA
WEEKEND
|
241,361,985
|
233,973,172
|
3.2
|
357.54
|
363.01
|
-1.5
|
|
WEST
|
12,389,882
|
18,296,425
|
-32.3
|
254.04
|
381.11
|
-33.3
|
|
TOTALS
|
931,704,851
|
904,530,814
|
3.0
|
3,139.02
|
3,401.33
|
-7.7
|
|
Source: PIB
|
|
Men's
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
CARGO
|
0
|
11,227,625
|
-100.0
|
0.00
|
191.61
|
-100.0
|
|
DETAILS
|
31,531,796
|
25,440,746
|
23.9
|
544.86
|
493.80
|
10.3
|
|
ESQUIRE
|
48,502,231
|
49,729,525
|
-2.5
|
457.89
|
498.01
|
-8.1
|
|
FHM
|
9,611,491
|
34,780,877
|
-72.4
|
90.14
|
348.93
|
-74.2
|
|
GQ
|
82,775,562
|
71,214,247
|
16.2
|
702.27
|
671.39
|
4.6
|
|
MAXIM
|
85,884,925
|
81,268,095
|
5.7
|
385.46
|
391.38
|
-1.5
|
|
MEN'S FITNESS
|
35,931,250
|
25,379,189
|
41.6
|
452.38
|
366.40
|
23.5
|
|
MEN'S HEALTH
|
79,618,723
|
60,801,128
|
30.9
|
524.71
|
428.28
|
22.5
|
|
MEN'S JOURNAL
|
47,472,307
|
39,616,074
|
19.8
|
550.61
|
481.17
|
14.4
|
|
MEN'S VOGUE
|
11,421,662
|
4,762,990
|
139.8
|
248.85
|
109.06
|
128.2
|
|
PLAYBOY
|
38,879,558
|
38,083,539
|
2.1
|
221.19
|
222.18
|
-0.4
|
|
STUFF
|
32,964,281
|
28,580,882
|
15.3
|
296.71
|
274.51
|
8.1
|
|
Totals
|
504,593,786
|
470,884,917
|
7.2
|
4,475.07
|
4,476.72
|
-0.0
|
|
Source: PIB |
|
Shelter
Year to date |
|
Titles |
2007
$s |
2006 $s |
%
chnge |
'07
pages |
'06
pages |
%
chnge |
|
ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST
|
80,041,380
|
83,761,014
|
-4.4
|
786.10
|
855.35
|
-8.1
|
|
COTTAGE LIVING
|
16,460,031
|
13,100,601
|
25.6
|
244.14
|
225.16
|
8.4
|
|
COUNTRY HOME
|
71,983,654
|
85,803,247
|
-16.1
|
372.36
|
463.39
|
-19.6
|
|
COUNTRY LIVING
|
69,369,730
|
65,856,744
|
5.3
|
514.64
|
505.46
|
1.8
|
|
DOMINO
|
18,895,765
|
| |