There has been a decline in publications/pages from January already, due to a move to more digital editions of print sources.
It is clear however, that the COVID-19 lockdown had an immediate effect on the print media numbers as the decline in figures grew exponentially from March 2020 onwards.
Pages declined, not only due to discontinued publications, but also daily and weekly publications incorporating their supplements into their main bodies as advertising decreased to continue delivering these profitably. We are however seeing supplements return from November publications received.
Other publications changes their frequency from weekly to bi-weekly for example to save on the number of their print runs.
One of the most noticeable shocks in the industry was the announcement by Caxton to discontinue a large number of their magazine titles, such as Bona, People, Rooi Rose, SA Garden & Home and Your Family.
Media24 also showed a strong move to digital with more subscriber-based online media and the discontinuation of magazines such as Drum, Men’s Health, Women’s Health and others.
