20 minutes takes off
Commuter newspaper catches up with Tages-Anzeiger and overtakes ZürichExpress
Commuter newspaper catches up with the Tages-Anzeiger and overtakes the ZürichExpressBy Daniel SchifferleNow 20 Minuten is really taking off: With a jump in reach of 21,000 to 526,000 readers, the commuter newspaper has catapulted itself into the top league. The gap to the Tages-Anzeiger is narrowing.
The jump of a whopping 67.5 percent or 21,000 readers is the highest growth 20 Minuten has ever achieved. However, it is not only the size of the gain that is surprising, but also its impact. With 526,000 new readers, 20 Minuten has made the leap into the top league of Swiss-German newspapers. The situation will be particularly tricky for the Tages-Anzeiger, which with 531,000 readers is now only a hair's breadth away from its main competitor.
However, 20 Minuten was not primarily on the rise in Zurich. In Bern and Basel in particular, growth rates reached unprecedented levels. In WG 34 (Bern), the commuter newspaper more than tripled its audience in one fell swoop. The free newspaper now has 89,000 readers in the Mutzenstadt. The other huge advance was in the Basel catchment area (WG 31). The increase here was only slightly more moderate, with an additional 59,000 readers to a new total of 97,000.
The fact that 20 Minuten's spurt in Bern and Basel is taking its toll on the respective regionally based daily newspapers - comparable to that which the Tages-Anzeiger has already paid and continues to pay - would actually be expected. But at the moment, only the Berner Zeitung seems to have been newly infected by the commuter newspaper flu (see page 20). Neither the Basler Zeitung nor the Bund have suffered any loss of readership.
Although 20 Minuten has gained comparatively few readers in the greater Zurich area, the development in WG 43 is highly symbolic. With the additional 28,000 readers, the commuter newspaper has overtaken the ZürichExpress (ZE) for the first time. The new balance of power is now clearly in favor of 20 Minuten, with 225,000 versus 199,000 readers.
However, ZE publishing director Heinz Krebs is demonstratively relaxed about the overtaking maneuver in WG 43. "We are not a commuter newspaper, but a city newspaper - and we are still number one in the city," he says. The ZE will remain as it is. There are no plans for any further measures or additional investments in the title.
The lack of any battle cries is not really surprising. After all, the passive stance fits in well with the strategy Tamedia is pursuing with regard to 20 Minuten. Even if there are currently still various obstacles in the way, the path to integrating the commuter newspaper appears to be set. Against this background, it would of course make no sense for Tamedia to continue investing in the ZE in order to position it even more strongly as a commuter newspaper.
The advance of 20 Minuten has only a small part to do with the discontinuation of Metropol. This is because it ceased publication on February 13, just a month and a half before the fieldwork for the current Mach Basic was completed. However, this also means that only around one eighth of the readership figures collected at that time are weighted in the readership study. This means that 20 Minuten will only be able to reap the lion's share of the Metropol inheritance in Mach Basic 2003.
Despite being delighted with the top result and the expected profits, the handbrake is still on at 20 Minuten. "We could do more, especially in Zurich, because many boxes here are often empty far too early," says publishing director Rolf Bollmann. However, the capacity of the print shop responsible for the Zurich edition is exhausted. We will live with this for the time being, because as long as the advertisements are not coming in despite good readership figures, it makes no sense to make additional investments.
The jump of a whopping 67.5 percent or 21,000 readers is the highest growth 20 Minuten has ever achieved. However, it is not only the size of the gain that is surprising, but also its impact. With 526,000 new readers, 20 Minuten has made the leap into the top league of Swiss-German newspapers. The situation will be particularly tricky for the Tages-Anzeiger, which with 531,000 readers is now only a hair's breadth away from its main competitor.
However, 20 Minuten was not primarily on the rise in Zurich. In Bern and Basel in particular, growth rates reached unprecedented levels. In WG 34 (Bern), the commuter newspaper more than tripled its audience in one fell swoop. The free newspaper now has 89,000 readers in the Mutzenstadt. The other huge advance was in the Basel catchment area (WG 31). The increase here was only slightly more moderate, with an additional 59,000 readers to a new total of 97,000.
The fact that 20 Minuten's spurt in Bern and Basel is taking its toll on the respective regionally based daily newspapers - comparable to that which the Tages-Anzeiger has already paid and continues to pay - would actually be expected. But at the moment, only the Berner Zeitung seems to have been newly infected by the commuter newspaper flu (see page 20). Neither the Basler Zeitung nor the Bund have suffered any loss of readership.
Although 20 Minuten has gained comparatively few readers in the greater Zurich area, the development in WG 43 is highly symbolic. With the additional 28,000 readers, the commuter newspaper has overtaken the ZürichExpress (ZE) for the first time. The new balance of power is now clearly in favor of 20 Minuten, with 225,000 versus 199,000 readers.
However, ZE publishing director Heinz Krebs is demonstratively relaxed about the overtaking maneuver in WG 43. "We are not a commuter newspaper, but a city newspaper - and we are still number one in the city," he says. The ZE will remain as it is. There are no plans for any further measures or additional investments in the title.
The lack of any battle cries is not really surprising. After all, the passive stance fits in well with the strategy Tamedia is pursuing with regard to 20 Minuten. Even if there are currently still various obstacles in the way, the path to integrating the commuter newspaper appears to be set. Against this background, it would of course make no sense for Tamedia to continue investing in the ZE in order to position it even more strongly as a commuter newspaper.
The advance of 20 Minuten has only a small part to do with the discontinuation of Metropol. This is because it ceased publication on February 13, just a month and a half before the fieldwork for the current Mach Basic was completed. However, this also means that only around one eighth of the readership figures collected at that time are weighted in the readership study. This means that 20 Minuten will only be able to reap the lion's share of the Metropol inheritance in Mach Basic 2003.
Despite being delighted with the top result and the expected profits, the handbrake is still on at 20 Minuten. "We could do more, especially in Zurich, because many boxes here are often empty far too early," says publishing director Rolf Bollmann. However, the capacity of the print shop responsible for the Zurich edition is exhausted. We will live with this for the time being, because as long as the advertisements are not coming in despite good readership figures, it makes no sense to make additional investments.
