Pressing troubles

The popularity of the internet and free newspapers looks to be biting into traditional newspapers' sales, as the latest report prepared by the Institute of Press Circulation Control (ZKDP) shows that sales of newspapers in Poland decreased in the first part of this year. In April, Fakt remained the best-selling newspaper in Poland, despite its average monthly circulation dropping 2.5 percent, from 528,948 in April 2006 to 516,000 y-o-y.

Daily Gazeta Wyborcza, which has been locking horns with Axel Springer's Dziennik for the past year, is the only paper that enjoyed an increase in sales over the course of the year. Its sales grew 0.9 percent, from 474,088 copies a month last year to 478,300 this year. In comparison, Dziennik sold 211,249 copies this April, 16.6 percent fewer than an year ago. Rzeczpospolita, another large daily, saw sales drop 12.6 percent.

"Poles do read quite a bit, but they are not as loyal readers as Scandinavians, who subscribe to one particular newspaper for generations," says ZKDP's managing director, Iwona Szczęsna. She adds that Poles tend to easily switch to another newspaper based on price and poor press distribution means that Poles are reluctant to subscribe since they sometimes don't get the delivered papers early enough.

Analysts expect Poland's major newspapers to continue to lose readership after the launch of Polskapresse's as-yet-unnamed nationwide daily, targeted at Gazeta Wyborcza's and Dziennik's audience. Polskapresse, which owns several large regional newspapers, is finalizing its preparations for the launch, expected in the fall.

Gazeta Wyborcza remains the leader in the newspaper-advertising market, with a 43-percent share in Q4 2007. Dziennik holds around four percent.