IRS 2010 Q1: Top Magazines In Regional Markets

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Delhi | May 10, 2010

The magazines are losing grounds in regional markets too according IRS 2010 Q1 results. Still Bangla magazine 'Karmakshetra', Malayalam fortnightly 'Vanitha', Kanadda weekly 'Sudha' and Kannada Monthly 'Roopatara' are among top magazines in their respective states to register some growth.

Here we take a look at the state wise results:

Maharashtra:

1. Even after losing 9% readers, Marathi weekly ' Saptahik Sakal' has replaced Marathi Monthly 'Grihashobhika' from 1st position, which is now at No. 3. AIR of 'Saptahik Sakal' in the current survey is 2.31 lakh as compared to 2.54 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
2. English weekly 'India Today' has also gone one position up although it has lost 16% of readers. It has AIR of 2.06 lakh as compared to 2.44 lakh in last survey.
3. Marathi Monthly 'Grihashobhika' has seen a sharp decline by 24% in its readership in the first quarter of IRS 2010. It has come down to 3rd position losing 63,000 readers taking its AIR at 2.03 lakh.
4. Marathi six days daily 'Sandhyakal' has gained one position and 6% readers to secure 4th spot. It has AIR of 1.97 lakh in the current survey as compared to 1.85 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
5. By losing 10% of its readers, English Monthly 'Readers Digest' is now at No. 5. It has recorded AIR of 1.89 lakh in the state.

Kerala:

Kerala is still a paradise for Malayalam magazines where top 5 magazines have more than 10 lakh readers.

1. Kerala's No. 1 Malayalam fortnightly 'Vanitha' has registered 5% of growth to take its AIR to 29.9 lakh. It had 28.5 lakh readers in the last survey.
2. Malayalam weekly 'Balarama' has gone one position up even after losing 8% readers as compared to last survey. It has recorded 13.88 lakh AIR which was 15.07 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
3. 'Malayala Manorama' has seen a sharp decline by 11% in its readership to come down at No. 3 position. It has lost 1.76 lakh readers and registered AIR of 13.77 lakh in the first quarter of IRS 2010.
4. Malayalam monthly 'Matrubhumi Arogya Masika' has strengthened its position at No. 4 by gaining 12% readers as compared to last survey. Its AIR stands at 11.58 lakh which was 10.37 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
5. At No. 5 is 'Matrubhumi Thozhil Vartha' with AIR of 9.6 lakh by gaining just 9,000 readers as compared to IRS R2 2009.

Tamil Nadu:

1. Tamil Nadu's No. 1 weekly magazine 'Kumudam' has registered a huge dip of 10% in readership. Its AIR stands at 12.92 lakh in IRS 2010 Q1. It had 14.39 lakh readers in the last survey.
2. State's No. 2 Tamil weekly 'Ananda Vikatan' has also seen a sharp decline in the number of readers. In current survey, its AIR stands at 10.53 lakh as compared to 11.90 lakh in last survey.
3. The No. 3 Tamil weekly 'Kungumam' has registered some growth and added 4% readers in the first quarter of IRS 2010. Its AIR stands at 9.48 lakh as compared to 9.1 lakh in last survey.
4. Retaining its 4th spot in the state, Tamil fortnightly 'Aval Vikatan' has also registered a marginal growth. It has recorded AIR of 5.52 lakh as compared to 5.48 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
5. At No. 5 is Tamil monthly 'Mangayan Malar' which has lost 13% of its readers between January to March 2010. Its current AIR is 3.96 lakh as compared to 4.53 lakh in IRS R2 2009.

West Bengal:

1. Bangla weekly 'Karmakshetra' has maintained its leadership in the state by adding 61,000 readers as compared to the last survey. Its AIR stands at 7.41 lakh in IRS 2010 Q1. It had 6.80 lakh readers in the last survey.
2. Bangla fortnightly 'Sananda' has lost 3% readers but managed to save its position at No.2. Its AIR stands at 4.55 lakh as compared to 4.68 lakh in last survey.
3. The No. 3 Bangla weekly of the state 'Saptahik Bartaman' has also managed to retain its position but lost 3% readers in the first quarter of IRS 2010. Its AIR stands at 4.46 lakh as compared to 4.62 lakh in last survey.
4. Bangla fortnightly 'Desh' has replaced 'Unish Kuri' from 4th spot although it has lost 5% of its readers. It has recorded AIR of 3.66 lakh as compared to 3.85 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
5. At No. 5 is 'Unish Kuri' which has lost 8% readers in the first quarter of IRS 2010. Now its AIR stands at 3.62 lakh as compared to 3.93 lakh in IRS R2 2009.

Andhra Pradesh:

1. Telugu weekly 'Swati Sapari Vara Patrika' has maintained its leadership in the state despite losing 14% readers as compared to the last survey. Its AIR stands at 4.64 lakh in IRS 2010 Q1. It had 5.39 lakh readers in the last survey.
2. State's No. 2 Telugu monthly 'Swati' has also seen a huge dip in its readership by losing 21% of readers between January to March 2010. Its AIR stands at 1.44 lakh as compared to 1.82 lakh in last survey.
3. The No. 3 Telugu monthly of the state 'Annadata' has lost maximum 22% readers. It has recorded AIR of 1.29 lakh as compared to 1.66 lakh in last survey.
4. Telugu weekly 'Andhra Bhoomi Sachitra Vara Patrika' has grown by 11% to come at 4th spot. It has recorded AIR of 1.15 lakh as compared to 1.04 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
5. At No. 5 is 'India Today (Telugu)' with AIR of 1.13 lakh by losing 17,000 readers as compared to IRS R2 2009.

Karnataka:

1. Karnataka's No.1 Kannada weekly 'Sudha' has strengthened its leadership in the state by adding 14% readers as compared to the last survey. Its AIR stands at 3.16 lakh in IRS 2010 Q1. It had 2.77 lakh readers in the last survey.
2. State's No. 2 Kannada monthly 'Roopatara' has also added 14% readers taking its AIR to 2.18 lakh as compared to 1.91 lakh in last survey.
3. The No. 3 magazine of the state Kannada monthly 'Grih Shobha' has also registered marginal growth by 1% in first quarter of IRS 2010 as compared to last survey. Its AIR stands at 1.99 lakh.
4. Kannada weekly 'Mangala' has registered a sharp decline by losing 12% readers between January to March 2010. It has managed to remain at 4th spot in the state with AIR of 1.48 lakh as compared to 1.68 lakh in IRS R2 2009.
5. Kannada weekly 'Taranga' has also lost 8% readers but retained its position at No. 5. It has recorded AIR of 1.34 lakh readers as compared to 1.45 lakh in IRS R2 2009.

Average Issue Readership (AIR) of a publication is defined as the number of readers of that publication who have claimed to have last read it within its periodicity – i.e. last read a daily yesterday, a weekly within the last week, a monthly within the last month, etc.

This measure is considered to be a more relevant measure of 'real' or 'regular' readership, especially for newspapers, most of which have been read / 'consumed' as matter of daily habit. Conventionally, media planners even calculate & compare cost-benefits of dailies based on the AIR figure. And hence it is perhaps most relevant to study readership trends as well in terms of AIR.

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