Regional Publishing International 40
GERMANY
Resisting readership declines
It’s been a busy year for Germany’s print media.
With 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the it was a strategic mistake to position the high-
giant of Western Europe, albeit an aging one end title with a bargain coverprice of just € 1.
– 20% of the population are aged 65+. Stay- He also points to too many design changes
ing attractive and relevant to its shrinking since the launch issue and uncertainty caused
pool of younger readers is one of the indus- by its frequency switching from a weekly to
try’s biggest challenges. biweekly and back again. Alexander Rauner,
Decentralised growth since 1945 has led to best practice manager at Mediaedge:cia, ques-
the dominance of a distinctively regional tions if Vanity Fair presents a real alternative The biggest launch of the year:
press. There are 334 regional newspapers and to existing society magazines. He notes that Despite a sustained marketing push,
local advertising still accounts for nearly half as the magazines is not IVW audited, it is im- Vanity Fair has got off to a bumpy ride.
of all display ads. Even the 10 national news- possible to track reliable trends, adding: “It is
papers, including quality titles Süddeutsche interesting that, according to Nielsen, Vanity
Zeitung, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Fair’s ad revenue fell from € 3.9 million in
Die Welt and Frankfurter Rundschau, still February to € 1.3 million in August.”
have strong regional bonds.
Collectively, German newspapers reach Gruner + Jahr, meanwhile, has expanded the creating interfaces between print and online,”
72% of the adult population, making it the market with Emotion, a woman’s monthly says Hubert Burda.
biggest press market in the world. Accord- in the mold of Hachette Filipacchi’s popu- During the first half of this financial year,
ing to Nielsen Media, newspapers have ac- lar French title Psychologies. Circulation has Springer invested € 532.2 million into its
tually increased their share of national ad- stabilised around the 80,000 mark. operations, including a stake in leading
spend from 22% to 25% since 2001, despite The women’s weeklies continue to be led by women’s portal auFeminin.com which sits
circulations falling. alongside its other digital successes auto-
bild.de, stepstone.de and immonet.de.
Anne Payer, head of print buying at Univer- The collective approach to the current cli-
sal McCann, believes fierce competition and Fierce competition mate is succinctly captured by Burda’s vice
strong regional strangleholds help explain why chairman Jürgen Todenhöfer: “The maga-
the market has not seen an explosion of for- and strong regional zines remain the company’s core business
eign free newspapers, like Metro, which have and mainstay. They are not only a symbol
ripped through most of the continent. Pub- strangleholds help ex- of the multimedia group’s sound economic
lishers have trialled free supplements of their development, but also an element in the
own, while others are sitting on plans for spoil- plain why the market media mix of advertising agencies and – as
ers if the need arises. Axel Springer’s populist strong brands – the ideal means to gain a
BILD, Europe’s biggest daily with a circula- has not seen an explo- foothold in growth markets. However,
tion of some 3.7 million, is a particularly fear- there is a need for action, and we have act-
some adversary. Schibsted’s free 20 Minutes sion of foreign free ed accordingly.”
did make a brief foray into the market but Arif Durrani
withdrew after a costly battle with regional ti- newspapers.
tles more than ready for the challenge. References: Statistisches Bundesamt, ZMG, BdZV,
More tangible activity has been seen in the Bild der Frau, Freizeit Revue, Neue Post and ZenithOptimedia, Online Vermarkterkreis
consumer magazine market, fuelled by the Brigitte. There has been a number of low-
gradual erosion of adspend, from a 24% share cost arrivals in the TV sector this year, with
in 2001 to 19% in the first half of 2007. In Farmer’s TV Life, Burda’s TV Smart and
contrast, internet spend grew 59% last year Springer’s TV Guide.
to € 1.65 billion, leapfrogging radio. The challenging times have spurred its big-
The biggest launch of the year was Condé gest players, Gruner + Jahr, Hubert Burda,
Nast’s edition of Vanity Fair in February. Axel Springer, Heinrich Bauer and Spiegel
Despite a sustained marketing push, it has got Verlag to invest heavily in digital media and
off to a bumpy ride. Wolfgang Nägele, man- international expansion. “We are developing
aging director of Universal McCann, believes our brands into media communities, thus
AAU07_2722_Inhalt.indd 40U07_2722_Inhalt.indd 40 008.11.2007 13:51:09 Uhr8.11.2007 13:51:09 Uhr
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