NEW YORK, Feb. 23, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Wall Street Journal today responds to a New York Times story that ran in its business section today, which provided its readers with misleading information about the Journal's circulation strategy.
The New York Times wrongly reported that the Journal's circulation growth is due to heavy discounting and that the use of this tactic had increased since the News Corp takeover. Like most subscription newspapers, the Journal uses discounted offers to attract new subscribers. However, in 2008 the Journal moved away from deep discounting and raised the introductory offer and newsstand pricing by nearly 40%. Even with higher prices across the board, Individually Paid Circulation continues to grow in an industry that is largely shrinking. Print circulation revenue for the most recent quarter was up by nearly 9% over the year prior.
"The New York Times may choose to speculate and offer its opinions in its business coverage, and there were many erroneous assumptions and speculations made in the story. However, regarding our circulation strategy and recent strong success, the Times simply got it wrong today," said Paul Bascobert, chief marketing officer for Dow Jones & Company and The Wall Street Journal.
The Wall Street Journal Monday through Friday edition grew individually paid subscribers 2.4% in the most recent ABC reporting period.
The Wall Street Journal Digital Network, which comprises the flagship site WSJ.com as well as MarketWatch.com, Barrons.com and AllThingsD.com, generated more than 33 million visitors in January, up 44% year-over-year. WSJ.com also currently has 1,079,000 subscribers in addition to the 20 million visitors per month in January. Barrons.com, the second subscriber site in the network, currently has more than 150,000 subscribers on top of its two million monthly visitors in January.
"Our readers have responded positively to the changes we have made to The Wall Street Journal franchise," Mr. Bascobert said. "Individually Paid Circulation is up, pricing is higher and circulation revenue is growing. The Journal is not seeing the erosion in readership that many newspapers appear to be experiencing."
In addition to strengthening its circulation strategy, the Journal made significant investments across its print and online properties. These enhancements include increased news staff globally, expansion of business news, editorial page and Washington/political and international coverage, WSJ., its first glossy magazine, the WSJ.com Mobile Reader to provide content from WSJ.com, MarketWatch.com, Barrons.com and AllThingsD.com via Blackberry smartphones, and a significant redesign of WSJ.com.
About The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal, the flagship publication of Dow Jones & Company is the world's leading business publication. Founded in 1889, The Wall Street Journal has a print and online circulation of more than 2 million, reaching the nation's top business and political leaders, as well as investors across the country. Holding 33 Pulitzer Prizes for outstanding journalism, The Wall Street Journal provides readers with trusted information and knowledge to make better decisions. The Wall Street franchise has more than 700 journalists world-wide, part of the Dow Jones network of nearly 1,800 business and financial news staff. Other publications that are part of The Wall Street Journal franchise, with a global audience of 3.8 million, include The Wall Street Journal Asia and The Wall Street Journal Europe. The Wall Street Journal Online at WSJ.com is the largest paid subscription news site on the Web with 10.9 million users each month. In 2008, the Journal was ranked No. 1 in BtoB's Media Power 50 for the ninth consecutive year. The Wall Street Journal Radio Network services news and information to more than 310 radio stations in the U.S.
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