WSJ is only major U.S. paper to grow circulation in first quarter

The Wall Street Journal continues to see a strong increase in individually paid circulation and is the only U.S. newspaper among the top 25 to show growth in total circulation.

The Journal’s individually paid circulation grew by more than 2.8 percent, as filed with the Audit Bureau of Circulations, subject to audit, released Monday.

This is the fourth consecutive period of individually paid growth for the Journal, an increase of more than 12.8 percent since March 2005. Consistent with the Journal’s strategy of focusing on the highest quality circulation, other paid circulation was reduced by more than 22 percent during the past year, while revenue per subscriber grew 13 percent during the same six month reporting period.

Electronic editions, as counted by ABC, rose 8.8 percent to 383,199. Total average paid circulation grew 0.6 percent to 2,082,189 from 2,069,463 year-over-year.

During the past year the Journal has made investments in its print and online products to provide subscribers more. These investments include: expanded coverage of U.S., political and international news, additional editorial pages, additional WSJ.com global editions, and new products, such as the WSJ Mobile Reader application for the Blackberry and iPhone, WSJ., the Journal’s glossy magazine, and a redesigned WSJ.com.

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