Slight recovery in the press
Swiss regional newspapers are on the upswing. After years of declining readership, regional papers are once again being read more frequently. The high-circulation dailies remain under pressure.
The most widely read newspaper in Switzerland remains the commuter paper 20 Minuten, according to a survey conducted by Wemf AG für Werbemedienforschung between October 2013 and September 2014. However, 20 Minuten is losing readership significantly compared to the previous year. Blick am Abend, Switzerland's second major commuter newspaper, also suffered a statistically significant decline. The high-circulation Blick is faring no better. Tages-Anzeiger and Neue Zürcher Zeitung are also losing readers, but their losses remain within the statistical confidence range.
Regional press in demand
Most regional newspapers are on trend. For example, the Aargauer Zeitung, Winterthurer Landbote and Berner Zeitung/Bund are attracting growing reader interest, while the St. Galler Tagblatt narrowly maintained its reach. Smaller regional newspapers such as the Freiburger Nachrichten, the Schaffhauser Nachrichten, the Bote der Urschweiz and the Zurich regional newspapers performed positively.
The development of readership of the Sunday papers is mixed. Although Sonntagsblick suffered significant losses compared with the previous year, it clearly remains the most-read newspaper at the weekend. In contrast, the NZZ am Sonntag, the Sonntagszeitung and the Schweiz am Sonntag were able to increase their readership. However, these increases are by no means significant; the titles remain stable at best. Moreover, this only applies to the semester comparison; in the year-on-year comparison, all Sunday titles lost ground, Sonnagsblick and NZZ am Sonntag even significantly.
Financial stocks more popular
Following heavy losses in the 2014 spring survey, the business publications recovered. Bilanz, Handelszeitung, and Finanz und Wirtschaft attracted greater reader interest. While Migros magazine did not significantly increase its reach, Coopzeitung lost significant ground. Landliebe continues to be on the upswing, even though growth has flattened out after strong increases in the past. Das Magazin and NZZ Folio also attracted greater reader interest, although neither showed significant growth compared to the previous semester. By contrast, specialty magazines such as PCtipp and Saisonküche suffered noticeably.
In French-speaking Switzerland, the high-circulation titles performed slightly better than in German-speaking Switzerland. The French-language commuter paper 20 minutes narrowly maintained its readership. Le Matin and Le Matin dimanche made gains, while 24heures was able to maintain its number of readers. (SDA/wewo)
