Papers feel pinch in tough market

THE first six months of 2004 has been a difficult period for the Irish newspaper industry, especially for the daily broadsheets, according to official figures released yesterday.

Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) figures reveal a fall in broadsheet sales for the Irish Examiner, the Irish Independent and the Irish Times, compared with the same period in 2003 (the Irish Independent launched its daily tabloid February 10, 2004).

The overall Sunday newspaper market during the January to June period (excluding the Irish Daily Star Sunday, which was not on the market during the same period last year) also fell by 2.5%, or 21,762 copies, to 851,294 sales.