Free daily circulation dips in Switzerland

Posted by Alisa Zykova on January 6, 2009 at 4:30 PM

While free newspapers from Switzerland have been watching circulation spike over the last few years, the trend was reversed by the end of 2008 as circulation fell year-on-year, Newspaper Innovation reported Monday.

Two new titles may be to blame for the overall downturn. .ch, launched in September 2007, was redesigned and relaunched in October 2008 with a lower circulation, down from 430,000 to 370,000. Household distribution for the title was also put on hold. News, launched two months after .ch, shuttered its Mittelland edition at the beginning of December.

Mittelland's publisher pointed out that the title's circulation of 334,000 would not be affected, as other editions upped their distribution; however, Newspaper Innovation reported that the title's 2009 rate card shows the figure is closer to 300,000.

Titles 20 Minuten and Le Matin Bleu both rose in circulation, causing total free daily circulation in the country to decrease by 50,000. .ch and News circulation figures have not been audited yet, according to Newspaper Innovation.