• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, April 30, 2015

The New York Times Co. -- widely considered one of the most forward-thinking newspaper publishers in the U.S. -- is still feeling the pinch of print advertising declines, despite its ongoing digital reinvention. The company reported that total revenues slipped 1.6% from $390.4 million in the first quarter of 2014 to $384.2 million in the first quarter of 2015, as the decline in print ads more than offset a modest gain in circulation revenues.

Total advertising revenues fell 5.8% from $159.2 million to $149.9 million, reflecting an 11.1% drop in print advertising revenue. The print decline was offset somewhat by a 10.7% increase in digital revenues from $38.2 million in the first quarter of 2014 to $42.3 million in the first quarter of 2015.

In proportional terms, digital ads increased from 24% to 28.2% of the company’s total ad business over this period.

In terms of ad categories, display advertising (combining categories formerly known as “local” and “national”) fell 7% to $136.4 million in the first quarter, while classifieds posted a 1.9% increase to $9.3 million.

Circulation revenues increased 0.8% from $209.7 million to $211.5 million, due in part to an increase in home delivery for the print edition. Circ revenues from digital-only subscription products jumped 14.4% to $46.1 million, reflecting continued growth in digital sub sales.

The total number of subscribers for NYTCO’s digital sub products increased from around 910,000 at the end of 2014 to 957,000 at the end of the first quarter of 2015, the latter the highest-ever figure for digital subs at the company.

Looking ahead, more print ad declines are on the way, as NYTCO predicts a drop in the mid-single digits in the second quarter of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014.