Successful vertical take-off
Free Press: According to WEMF, the commuter newspaper Le Matin Bleu has already reached 247,000 French-speaking Swiss just 11 months after its launch.
Free press Eleven months after its launch, the commuter newspaper Le Matin Bleu already reaches 247,000 Romands, according to Wemf. 218,000 readers on average were recorded for Le Matin Bleu in the first Wemf special study, which was carried out from January to June 2006. The second study, whose survey period lasted from January 3 to September 24, now averages 247,000 readers - an increase of 13.3 percent in just three months. "We are very satisfied because the reach grew despite the vacation period, during which we reduced circulation by 20,000 to 30,000 copies in some cases," emphasizes Théo Bouchat, Director of Edipresse. He is therefore not bothered by the fact that the increase in reach from 16.2 percent to 18.7 percent remains within the confidence range (although quite close). Bouchat: "The direction is right: Matin Bleu, which was launched on October 31, 2005, continues to grow and will certainly do even better in Mach Basic 2007-1." Then probably even significantly better than in the first study, despite competition from 20 minutes, which was launched in March.
Le Matin Bleu gained 19,000 of the 29,000 additional readers outside the Léman arc in the cantons of Neuchâtel, Jura, Fribourg and Valais, where distribution was expanded in the summer. Readership there rose to 30,000. In the cantons of Vaud (WG 12) and Geneva (WG 11), the reach increased by 8,000 and 3,000 people respectively. In both regions, the free newspaper reaches just over a quarter of the population. However, it is thought-provoking that the extremely high affinity of initially 160 (compared to the average value of 100) has already fallen significantly there - in Geneva by 15 points.
The readership structure hardly changed compared to the first study. Matin Bleu increased equally among all age groups: The proportion of over 55-year-olds remains at 23 percent. As before, the 35 to 54-year-olds make up 32 percent. The 14 to 34-year-olds continue to form the main group with a share of 45%. Affinity among the latter also remained high at 136 (previously 137).
Men are catching upThe gender ratio of the readership has also changed only slightly. The jubilation of Edipresse last September, according to which the free newspaper is the first daily to "have more female readers than male readers", is, however, gently put into perspective. Not only has the proportion of women fallen from 52 to 51 percent. The affinity with the female sex also declined: Matin Bleu is now more male-oriented. In the longer term, it is likely that the genders will converge - which is still remarkable for a daily newspaper.
For the first time, Wemf provides information on household income, professional position and education of Matin Bleu readers. According to this, the "typical" Matin Bleu reader is either not employed (44%) or fully employed (47%). The working readers are primarily employees (41 percent). Managers and the self-employed are in the minority (together 18%). 45 percent of readers have an intermediate education, 35 percent have a higher education. The majority (37%) live in households with a monthly income of CHF 4,000 to 8,000.
The Frischknecht caseAn embarrassing mistake at Le Matin Bleu:
Recently, the free newspaper featured a picture of former racing cyclist Thomas Frischknecht, who is in prison for ecstasy trafficking, on the front page. However, the editors confused the accused with the better-known mountain biker of the same name - and depicted the wrong Thomas Frischknecht. However, this has nothing to do with the free commuter newspaper genre: The French news agency AFP and the Parisian newspaper Le Monde also made a similar mistake. Frischknecht - the mountain biker - is now considering legal action. The apology and correction the following day on the Front and on page 2 of Matin Bleu are apparently not enough for him. Markus Knöpfli
Le Matin Bleu gained 19,000 of the 29,000 additional readers outside the Léman arc in the cantons of Neuchâtel, Jura, Fribourg and Valais, where distribution was expanded in the summer. Readership there rose to 30,000. In the cantons of Vaud (WG 12) and Geneva (WG 11), the reach increased by 8,000 and 3,000 people respectively. In both regions, the free newspaper reaches just over a quarter of the population. However, it is thought-provoking that the extremely high affinity of initially 160 (compared to the average value of 100) has already fallen significantly there - in Geneva by 15 points.
The readership structure hardly changed compared to the first study. Matin Bleu increased equally among all age groups: The proportion of over 55-year-olds remains at 23 percent. As before, the 35 to 54-year-olds make up 32 percent. The 14 to 34-year-olds continue to form the main group with a share of 45%. Affinity among the latter also remained high at 136 (previously 137).
Men are catching upThe gender ratio of the readership has also changed only slightly. The jubilation of Edipresse last September, according to which the free newspaper is the first daily to "have more female readers than male readers", is, however, gently put into perspective. Not only has the proportion of women fallen from 52 to 51 percent. The affinity with the female sex also declined: Matin Bleu is now more male-oriented. In the longer term, it is likely that the genders will converge - which is still remarkable for a daily newspaper.
For the first time, Wemf provides information on household income, professional position and education of Matin Bleu readers. According to this, the "typical" Matin Bleu reader is either not employed (44%) or fully employed (47%). The working readers are primarily employees (41 percent). Managers and the self-employed are in the minority (together 18%). 45 percent of readers have an intermediate education, 35 percent have a higher education. The majority (37%) live in households with a monthly income of CHF 4,000 to 8,000.
The Frischknecht caseAn embarrassing mistake at Le Matin Bleu:
Recently, the free newspaper featured a picture of former racing cyclist Thomas Frischknecht, who is in prison for ecstasy trafficking, on the front page. However, the editors confused the accused with the better-known mountain biker of the same name - and depicted the wrong Thomas Frischknecht. However, this has nothing to do with the free commuter newspaper genre: The French news agency AFP and the Parisian newspaper Le Monde also made a similar mistake. Frischknecht - the mountain biker - is now considering legal action. The apology and correction the following day on the Front and on page 2 of Matin Bleu are apparently not enough for him. Markus Knöpfli
