Advertiser, Star-Bulletin report circulation gains
By Andrew Gomes
Advertiser Staff Writer
The Honolulu Advertiser and Honolulu Star-Bulletin have both reported daily circulation gains in one of the most complete looks yet at how the newspapers are faring since joint operations were severed six months ago and they began battling for readers and advertisers.
Figures released by the Audit Bureau of Circulations on Monday show The Advertiser's average daily Monday-Saturday circulation for the six months ended Sept. 30 rose 39 percent to 152,098, compared to 109,477 during the same six months last year.
In the Star-Bulletin's first official report to the bureau, its average daily Monday-Friday circulation for the period rose 7.6 percent to 64,305, from 59,748 during the same six months of last year. The Star-Bulletin reported Saturday circulation of 62,380; a comparable figure for last year was not immediately available.
For its Sunday edition, The Advertiser reported a 6.3 percent decline to 173,336. Last year, when the Star-Bulletin published only Monday through Saturday, The Advertiser's Sunday circulation was 185,042.
The Star-Bulletin reported average circulation for its new Sunday edition, which started April 1, at 64,344. That is less than half the 130,000 forecast by the paper's owner, David Black, prior to his takeover in March.
The new figures were reported under new bureau rules that allow newspapers to include third-party bulk sales and copies sold for at least 25 percent of the published price, which make year-over-year comparisons inexact.
The figures released Monday represent combined daily paid circulation averages claimed by each paper's publisher. Those numbers, combined with circulation claims for the next six months through March 31, will be audited by the bureau next year.
Circulation figures are a key measure for companies tracking the effectiveness of their advertising dollars and are used by publications as a measure to set advertising rates. The Audit Bureau of Circulations, based in Schaumberg, Ill., is the leading independent media-auditing organization in the United States and Canada, verifying for advertisers the paid circulation of newspapers and magazines.
Dennis Francis, The Advertiser's general manager, said the paper is right on target. "We're exactly where we hoped to be and very pleased with our results," he said. "And I think it's particularly true with Sunday given that an entire new Sunday newspaper was introduced."
Mark Lewis, vice president of circulation for the Star-Bulletin, said the recent figures are "just fine." He declined to comment on previously stated circulation goals and claims.
Black had said in a March interview that he expected weekday circulation to hit nearly 100,000 immediately. Sunday circulation, he predicted, would reach about 130,000, although he said that was a ballpark estimate.
The circulation figures released Monday also are lower than information the Star-Bulletin has distributed to some advertisers saying its average paid Sunday circulation (excluding "controlled copies") was about 67,000.
Short-term declines in reported circulation also occurred at The Advertiser. In a special audited circulation report for the 15 weeks after the March 15 breakup, the Audit Bureau said the paper's Monday-Saturday circulation was 153,666 — 1,568 more than the current figures. For Sunday circulation, the drop over the same period was about 4,750.
Francis said the short-term declines could be seasonal, and are not unusual. "That doesn't really bother us," he said. "We're very pleased with our results. We have committed to levels of circulation and readership for our advertisers, and we have achieved those levels."
