Guardian falls back as compacts make mark

by Colin Grimshaw, Marketing 08-Apr-04

LONDON - The Guardian may be forced into a U-turn over its decision not to launch a compact edition following a 9% year-on-year fall in its March sales, according to ABC figures due out tomorrow (Friday).

The Independent, The Guardian's main rival, has seen sales rise 16%, with sales of its compact edition reaching 140,000 - more than half of all copies sold. Sales of The Times' compact version have now hit the 200,000 mark.

The Daily Telegraph is expected to post an increase of 20,000 copies on February, but this is thought to be the result of an increase in bulks and foreign distribution. Sales are flat year-on-year.

Officially, The Daily Telegraph claims it has not made the decision to launch a compact because of cost concerns. However, Telegraph insiders believe it is a question of when, not if. The Times prints 400,000 copies of its compact edition, with half going unsold.