• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, October 12, 2009

The third quarter delivered little good news for the magazine business, with the Publishers Information Bureau reporting that total ad pages in consumer magazines declined 26.6% compared to the same period in 2008, to 38,626. For the year-to-date through September, total ad pages are down 27.2% to 119,575. The weakness in September -- traditionally a strong month buoyed by fashion advertising -- is especially troubling as magazines move into the fourth quarter with its critical holiday season.

Out of the 230 currently-published titles tracked by the Publishers Information Bureau, only 23 (10%) saw ad pages increase in the third quarter of 2009 compared to the same period last year. Of the 207 which declined, 58 (25% of the total) experienced drops of less than 10%, 60 (26%) dropped 10%-19.9%, 29 (12.5%) dropped 20%-29.9%, 35 (15%) dropped 30%-39.9%, and 25 (11%) dropped over 40%.

Among the 23 titles where ad pages grew in the third quarter, Family Circle increased 31.5% to 432, People Style Watch increased 20.1% to 145, OK Weekly increased 13.5% to 248, The Week increased 12.8% to 151, National Geographic increased 10.7% to 95, Saveur increased 10.4% to 46, Life & Style Weekly increased 8.4% to 116, Better Homes & Gardens increased 8.2% to 418, Ladies' Home Journal increased 6.8% to 307, More increased 5.1% to 205, and In Style was basically flat with a small (0.1%) increase to 604 pages.

Among the 207 titles where ad pages declined, some of the biggest drops came at National Geographic Adventures, down 59.1% to 39; Scientific American, down 56.6% to 51; Town & Country, down 55.4% to 140; Conde Nast Traveler, down 50.1% to 188; W, down 49.3% to 279; Men's Journal, down 48.3% to 158; Architectural Digest, down 47.8% to 156; Elle Decor, down 46.9% to 123; National Geographic Traveler, down 43.8% to 72; and Autoweek, down 42.8% to 203.

For the year-to-date, 208 (93.5%) of the 230 titles currently tracked by PIB have seen ad pages decrease. Of these, 24 (10.5%) experienced ad page declines of less than 10%, 54 (23.5%) dropped 10%-19.9%, 63 (28%) dropped 20%-29.9%, 38 (16.5%) dropped 30%-39.9%, and 29 (12.5%) dropped 40% or more.

Comparing the quarterly and year-to-date figures, the data shows that declines in the third quarter were not as deep, on average, as in the preceding two quarters. This in turn suggests the rate of decline in ad pages has moderated; on the other hand, comparisons are becoming easier as the industry moves through the second half of the year (magazines began dropping sharply in step with the broader economic downturn beginning in September of last year).