IRS Q3 2010: Mixed bag for dailies & periodicals in J&K; steep growth for General Knowledge Today

Multilingual is what the state of Maharashtra can be called with it being home to nearly 60 newspapers in about 10 different languages, including Marathi, Hindi, English, Gujarati, Urdu, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and Bengali. However, it comes as no surprise that the publications mostly read are in Marathi, Hindi and English.

The publications in the state have, however, seen a mixed bag of growths and declines, with seven of the top 15 seeing a drop in Average Issue Readership (AIR) as per the IRS Q3 2010 results. The scenario was much better in Q2, when just four of the top 15 had seen decline.

Lokmat leads in this state with a readership of 7,802,000, which is a 5.49 per cent increase in its readership. Daily Sakal follows with a growth of 10.79 per cent, while Pudhari has grown by 3.26 per cent as opposed to its decline in the previous round. Punya Nagari has continued to witness decline in this quarter too, falling 5.64 per cent to record an AIR of 2,059,000. At fifth position is The Times of India, which has seen a growth of 4.95 per cent, registering an AIR of 2,013,000 in Q3. Thus, just one of the top five have seen decline.

Among the publications between No. 6 and No. 10, just two have seen growth. Maharashtra Times, Deshonatti and Mumbai Mirror have shown decline of 2.26 per cent, 8.55 per cent and 3.82 per cent, respectively. Loksatta has grown in readership from 1,082,000 in Q2 to 1,059,000 in Q3, which is an increase of 1.20 per cent. Gujarat Samachar has recorded a growth of 9.28 per cent with an AIR of 777,000 in this quarter.

The next set again sees three of the five dailies in red. Lokmat Samachar and Nava Bharat (Mah/Chh) have grown marginally by 1.13 per cent and 1.66 per cent, respectively. Navakal, Mumbai Choufer and DNA have all shown decline of 7.01 per cent, 6.85 per cent and 5.01 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, Hindustan Times and Yeshobhumi have seen growth of 4.66 per cent and 8.95 per cent, respectively. However, Navbharat Times, Saamana and Tarun Bharat (Belgaum, Maharashtra & Goa) have shown decline of 2.50 per cent, 3.62 per cent and 10.51 per cent, respectively.

[The mentioned readership figures are Average Issue Readership (AIR) figures, Total Readership (TR) may vary. After various discussions with advertisers and media buyers, as a policy exchange4media uses only AIR numbers.]

The IRS Q3 2010 results bring no cheer to publications in the Tamil Nadu market. The figures show decline for both dailies and magazines among the top five in terms of readership.

Among dailies, Daily Thanthi leads the list, though it has shown a decline of 2.46 per cent in its Average Issue Readership (AIR), which stands at 7,084,000 in Q3, as against the Q2 figure of 7,263,000. Dinakaran, too, has seen a negative growth of 3.64 per cent – from 4,991,000 in Q3 to 4,809,000 in the previous quarter.

Dinamalar, at No. 3, has seen a decline of 6.96 per cent and the readership stands at 2,660,000 in Q3 as opposed to 2,859,000 in Q2.

The Hindu is the only English language newspaper to figure among the top five dailies in Tamil Nadu. However, the paper has seen a marginal decline of 1.76 per cent and its AIR stands at 1,111,000 in Q3.

Tamil daily Malai Malar has registered a fall of 8.99 per cent and its Q3 readership is at 506,000 as opposed to 556,000 in Q2. Dinamani, which is ranked sixth, has seen the steepest fall of 10.35 per cent – from 512,000 in Q2 to 459,000 in this quarter.

The situation is no different for magazines in the Tamil Nadu market with all the top five magazines showing decline in AIR. Kumudam leads among magazines in this market with an AIR of 1,158,000, which is a fall of 8.6 per ent over its Q2 figure of 1,267,000.

Ananda Vikatan has clocked a readership of 968,000 in Q3, as opposed to 1,032,000 in Q2, a decline of 6.2 per cent.

Kungumam has seen the steepest fall of 12.18 per cent and its Q3 AIR stands at 793,000, as compared to 903,000 in the previous quarter. Aval Vikatan has registered a 6.29 per cent decline in readership at 521,000, while Mangayar Malar has seen a decline of 9.11 per cent – from 362,000 in Q2 to 329,000 in the third quarter.

[The mentioned readership figures are Average Issue Readership (AIR) figures, Total Readership (TR) may vary. After various discussions with advertisers and media buyers, as a policy exchange4media uses only AIR numbers.]

Newspapers in Bangalore have witnessed mostly positive growth as per the IRS Q3 2010 results. Nine of the top 12, including English and Kannada language dailies, have seen healthy growth in readership. English daily Bangalore Mirror has seen a massive double digit growth of 71 per cent in Average Issue Readership (AIR) as against the Q2 results.

Kannada daily Vijay Karnataka is the most read daily in Bangalore. With an AIR of 711,000, Vijay Karnataka has registered a growth of 6 per cent in readership. Another Kannada daily, Prajavani, has witnessed double digit growth of 10 per cent and has recorded an AIR of 670,000. Kannada Prabha, with an AIR of 168,000 has received a growth of 6 per cent. The paper is ranked fifth in the overall list. Udayavani has got an AIR of 113,000, up 16 per cent as against its Q2 figure of 97,000.

However, Sanjavani has seen a 5 per cent decline in AIR at 99,000 from 104,000 in the previous quarter. Samyukta Karnataka, on the other hand, has seen a growth of 3 per cent in readership at 40,000.

Among English dailies, The Times of India with an AIR of 350,000 is the most read English daily and the No.3 most read in the overall Bangalore list. The paper has recorded a 6 per cent growth in AIR.

Deccan Herald has received a growth of 7 per cent at 176,000. The paper is ranked fourth in the overall list.

Bangalore Mirror has seen a whopping 71 per cent rise in its AIR – from 62,000 in Q2 to 106,000 in this quarter. The paper is at No. 7 in the overall list.

On the other hand, Deccan Chronicle has witnessed a decline of 5 per cent and has registered an AIR of 96,000. The Hindu and The New Indian Express have received AIR of 38,000 and 37,000, respectively. While The Hindu has seen a 19 per cent drop in its AIR, The New Indian Express has clocked a 12 per cent growth.

[The mentioned readership figures are Average Issue Readership (AIR) figures, Total Readership (TR) may vary. After various discussions with advertisers and media buyers, as a policy exchange4media uses only AIR numbers.]

While a few markets have shown decline and a few others a mixed bag, the Karnataka market is one that has largely seen growth in the IRS Q3 2010 results, with just four of the top 15 dailies showing decline. Although it is a largely Kannada language based state, when it comes to choice of languages, publications in English, Marathi and even Tamil are existent among the top newspapers.

All top five dailies are Kannada language papers – Vijay Karnataka, Prajavani, Samyukta Karnataka, Kannada Prabha and Udyavani – in that order. Vijay Karnataka is the largest read newspaper in the state with an Average Issue Readership (AIR) of 3,425,000, which is a 4.80 per cent increase over the Q2 figure of 3,268,000.

Prajavani and Samyukta have both grown by 13.45 per cent and 14.95 per cent, respectively. Prajavani has garnered a readership of 2,910,000, while Samyukta Karnataka is at 1,131,000. Kannada Prabha has clocked a healthy 29.35 per cent growth in AIR at 1,115,000, while Udayavani has garnered a 12.09 per cent increase with a readership of 890,000.

The Times of India has seen a growth of 4.72 per cent in its AIR, which stands at 466,000. Deccan Herald has clocked an AIR of 356,000, up 13.38 per cent.

Kannada daily Sanjavani has grown by a marginal 1.90 per cent, while Bangalore Mirror has grown by a massive 65.71 per cent and has recorded an AIR of 116,000. Deccan Chronicle is the only daily in the top 10 that has seen a decline. The publication has dropped from 116,000 in Q2 to 110,000 in Q3, a decline of 5.17 per cent.

Karavali Ale has gained by a mammoth 151.16 per cent, its readership going up from 43,000 in Q2 to 108,000 in Q3. Daily Thanthi has also seen an increase of 17.65 per cent in its AIR at 100,000.

Both DNA and Daily Sakal have dropped in readership by 22.22 per cent and 5.32 per cent, respectively. Tarun Bharat (Belgaum, Maharashtra & Goa) has dropped by a huge 58.15 per cent, with its readership at 95,000 in Q3 from 227,000 in the previous quarter.

[The mentioned readership figures are Average Issue Readership (AIR) figures, Total Readership (TR) may vary. After various discussions with advertisers and media buyers, as a policy exchange4media uses only AIR numbers.]

The IRS Q3 2010 results bring no cheer for the dailies in Chandigarh. Some time back Hindi daily Hindustan had terminated its Chandigarh edition due to decreasing readership trends, the situation hasn’t improved for most dailies, which have seen sharp drop in readership in this quarter.

Hindi Dailies
All the Hindi dailies in the overall top 10 dailies’ list have seen de-growth in the third quarter. Dainik Bhaskar leads the list, but has seen a 5 per cent decline in its Average Issue Readership (AIR) – from 180,000 in Q2 to 171,000 in Q3.

Amar Ujala, the No. 4 daily in the overall list and ranked second among Hindi dailies in Chandigarh, has also seen a negative growth of 8.24 per cent in readership at 78,000. Dainik Jagran is ranked fifth in the overall list and is the third most read Hindi daily in the Union Territory. The paper has seen an AIR of 26,000 in Q3, down 7.14 per cent from its Q2 figure of 28,000.

Punjab Kesari, Hindustan and Dainik Tribune have registered double digit negative growth in readership at 12.50 per cent, 12.50 per cent, 14.29 per cent, respectively.

English Dailies
On the other hand, English dailies have fared better in the Chandigarh market. The Tribune is the most read English daily in this market and is ranked second in the overall list with an AIR of 89,000 in Q3, decline of 5.32 per cent over the Q2 figure of 94,000.

Hindustan Times, the second most read English daily in Chandigarh, has recorded a positive growth of 8.97 per cent with its AIR at 85,000 in Q3 from 78,000 in the previous quarter. The Times of India, too, has seen positive growth of 9.09 per cent with an AIR of 24,000. The paper is ranked sixth in the overall list. The Indian Express has seen a drop of 6.25 per cent, recording an AIR of 15,000.

Periodicals
Meanwhile, magazines in Chandigarh continue with the positive performance in IRS Q3 2010 results. India Today has seen a robust positive growth of 41.67 per cent is the most read magazine in the Union Territory. The weekly has recorded an AIR of 17,000 from 12,000 in Q2.

Readers Digest follows with an AIR of 14,000, up 7.69 per cent from its Q2 figure of 13,000.

Hindi magazine Grih Shobha is the third most read magazine in this market, but has seen a drop of 21.43 per cent in its AIR, which stands at 11,000 in this quarter.

On the other hand, both Femina and Competition Success Review have doubled their AIR figures from the previous quarter, witnessing 100 per cent growth in readership.

However, it is Outlook Traveller that has seen the highest growth in readership in this market, which stands at 150 per cent.

[The mentioned readership figures are Average Issue Readership (AIR) figures, Total Readership (TR) may vary. After various discussions with advertisers and media buyers, as a policy exchange4media uses only AIR numbers.]

Dailies in Himachal Pradesh have mostly seen growth in Average Issue Readership (AIR) as per the IRS Q3 2010 results. Amar Ujala overtakes Punjab Kesari to claim the top spot among dailies. While Hindi dailies have seen mixed results, English dailies have whipped up mostly double digit growth in the third quarter.

Hindi Dailies
Amar Ujala has seen an AIR of 390,000 in Q3, a growth of 5.12 per cent over its Q2 figure of 371,000. The paper, which was ranked second in the previous quarter, has emerged as the most read daily in Himachal Pradesh. Punjab Kesari, which was at No. 1 in the previous quarter, slips to the second spot in this quarter. The paper has seen a decline of 5.67 per cent in its AIR, which stands at 383,000.

Divya Himachal, which is ranked third, has also seen a decline in AIR of 5.99 per cent. The daily has clocked an AIR of 157,000 in this quarter.

Dainik Bhaskar, with double digit growth of 21.31 per cent, has maintained its fourth position and has seen an AIR of 74,000, while Dainik Jagran has witnessed a double digit negative growth of 14.29 per cent in AIR, garnering an AIR of 36,000.

English Dailies
Among English dailies, The Tribune maintains its leadership position with an AIR of 48,000, up 4.35 per cent over its Q2 figure of 46,000. It may be recalled that The Tribune had seen an 8 per cent decline in its AIR in the previous quarter.

Hindustan Times follows with a steep double digit growth of 50 per cent in its AIR at 15,000. The Times of India has recorded a growth of 27.27 per cent in its AIR, which stands at 14,000 in Q3. The Economic Times has also seen a 50 per cent growth in its AIR at 3,000.

[The mentioned readership figures are Average Issue Readership (AIR) figures, Total Readership (TR) may vary. After various discussions with advertisers and media buyers, as a policy exchange4media uses only AIR numbers.]