The Audit Bureau of Circulations will adjust the definition of paid circula¬tion to better reflect payments by indi¬viduals and specialized channels.
A new verified category has been cre¬ated for third party circulation, such as schools, which will no longer be part of paid circulation reports. Copies distrib¬uted by hotels and purchased by busi¬nesses for groups of employees will be reclassified to a new paid-circ category. Additionally, newspapers will have more flexibility to convert current home subscribers to a greater frequency.
ABC Publisher’s Statements and Au¬dit reports will be revised to better show summaries of total average circu¬lation (paid and verified) and distribu¬tion by channel.
Robert W. Althaus, VP, circulation for Gannett Co. Inc., called it a “win-win” for advertisers and publishers alike. “Advertisers have been asking for more transparency of the rules, to make them simpler, clearer and easier to un¬derstand,” he said. “From a newspaper perspective, they continue to focus on total circulation and paid circulation, and the recommendations help focus on growing audience segments.”
