• by David Goetzl , August 14, 2007

Time Inc. took a hit as leading titles Time and Sports Illustrated saw single-copy sales drop by double digits in the first half of the year, while People also dipped as it competed in the hot celebrity-news area.

Average single-copy sales, considered a good indication of a magazine's overall health, declined by 13.6% at Time as the magazine fell out of the top 10 in total circulation--which plunged 17.1% to 3.4 million for the first half of the year, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Time competitor Newsweek saw its single-copy sales dip 9.3%, but only had a .1% overall drop as it stayed in the 3.1 million range.

Time's free fall marked the largest drop for any of the magazines in the top 25 in total circulation. The only other one in double digits was the money-bleeding TV Guide, down 12.2% to 3.3 million.

Average single-copy sales at Sports Illustrated were down 12%, although total circulation edged up 1.2% to the 3.3 million range.

At People, single-copy sales dipped 5.6% to 1.4 million, and overall average circulation fell 2.2% to 3.7 million.

In the celebrity newsweekly category, People competitor Us Weekly also saw a single-copy average decline (by 3.4%), as did Star (down 3.5%). OK, meanwhile, soared up 25.3%, and In Touch rose 10.6%.