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Summary of our market study
In France, magazine and periodical publishers generate sales of around 5 billion euros.
The global magazine market is in decline in Europe and the United States, where there has been a shift from print to digital consumption, affecting both circulation and advertising revenues.
The French market reflects this trend, with paid circulation down for the magazine press. Sales for magazine and periodical publishers are around 5 billion euros.
Despite this downturn, the French still show a strong attachment to the written press.
Trends in the French magazine market
The traditional print magazine format is in decline, with new generations opting for digital content rather than physical copies. Paid circulation in France has fallen by around 30% in 7 years.
The adoption of digital alternatives is not yet generating comparable revenues, and means a period of uncertainty and adjustment for advertisers. These financial challenges are part of a wider global trend, with major Western markets recording an average annual decline of 5.5%.
Despite these challenges, the French remain committed to the written press.
Between 95 and 100% of French people read the press every month, and more than three-quarters read digital articles. Digital magazines are booming. The sector's main players are diversifying into podcasts and video-on-demand platforms.
Television-related publications lead the way, with "TV Magazine" having a circulation of over 4 million.
Direct subscriptions and digital formats are gaining ground, accounting for more than half of magazine circulation. Physical outlets account for 37% of sales.
Fashion and automotive magazines exert a substantial influence on older, more affluent consumers.
Players in the French magazine publishing market
- SFR Presse Distribution: Known for distributing a variety of magazine titles, SFR Presse Distribution stands out in the French magazine landscape for its comprehensive selection encompassing diverse interests and sectors, including well-known titles such as "Ici Paris".
- CMI Publishing: Headquartered in Levallois Perret, CMI Publishing is a leading publisher with a portfolio of well-known magazine titles, including "Télé 7 jours", "Public", "Elle", "Femina", "Marianne" and "Arts et Décorations". These publications focus on entertainment, celebrity news, art and culture, and offer readers a wide variety of content.
- Prisma Media: Prisma Media, another big name in the industry, boasts a strong line-up of popular magazines such as "GEO" and "Femme actuelle". The publisher has established itself as a go-to source for lifestyle, travel and current affairs content.
- Reworld Media Magazines: Reworld Media Magazines recently made headlines with its acquisition of Mondadori France. Its range of titles such as "Grazia", "Biba", "Marie-France", "AutoPlus" and "Le journal de la Maison" appeal to a wide audience, in line with its mission to provide content that resonates with contemporary readers.
- Bayard Presse: Specializing in a somewhat different niche, Bayard Presse targets seniors with "Notre Temps" and has forged a strong market position with religious and lifestyle publications, including "La Croix".
- Lexisnexis: Focusing more on specialized content, Lexisnexis publishes titles such as "La semaine juridique" - an essential resource for legal professionals - and comprehensive references such as the "Code du travail".
- France Messagerie: Representing a key change in distribution, France Messagerie embodies the new era of French press distribution, with a focus on optimizing flows between editeurs et les commerçants, playing a key role in ensuring that magazines reach their readers efficiently, whether via print or digital.
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Definition and scope of the study
A magazine is a press format for periodical publication, often illustrated. Magazines can cover a wide range of subjects, but are characterized by a precise editorial line. It is structured around an active community of readers, and is distributed by subscription as well as for individual sale.
The players in the magazine market in France are editors, printers, publishers, distributors and newsagents (press houses, newsstands, supermarkets, etc.)
The global market is in decline. Western markets, the main readers of magazines, are going through a difficult period. The magazine format is declining in popularity, particularly among the younger generation, who prefer other online formats. At the same time, the sector has begun a transition to digital distribution, a segment that is becoming increasingly dynamic.
This decline is also affecting the French market. Paid circulation (number of sales to broadcasters) fell by 30% between 2012 and 2019. Publishers' advertising revenues are also in decline, and the transition to digital is generating losses among advertisers who are not yet convinced by the new formats.
The market is therefore in a state of flux, with changing formats and a changing publishing landscape: major publishing groups are focusing on diversifying into podcasts and video/TV-on-demand platforms. What's more, demand is still there, only the way it's reached is changing.
It's also important to put the downturn in the sector into perspective, and remember that the French still have a strong attachment to the printed press. So we can only hope that the sector will regain momentum once its transformation is complete.
List of charts presented in this market study
- Evolution of magazine industry market size
- Magazine paid circulation (245 titles)
- Sales trends for magazine and periodical publishers
- Comparison of sales index trends for magazine and periodical publishers
- Press advertising revenues
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Latest news
Bayard Jeunesse modernizes its digital platform - 01/07/2024
- - Bayard Jeunesse: France's leading publisher of children's magazines, with a total monthly readership of 7 million, including "Pomme d'Api" and "J'aime lire".
- - BayaM platform content: 3,000 items of content, mainly from the Bayard Jeunesse catalog and Milan, another of the group's publishing houses.
- - 26% of content is video, algorithm-free and ad-free, curated entirely by an editorial team.
- - Subscriber target: 100,000 subscribers within a year, compared with 40,000 for the previous application.
- - Digital revenues: Target of 20 million euros on an annual basis, compared with 12 million euros in 2022-23.
- - Other Bayard Jeunesse digital offerings: "La Maternelle Montessori" educational app, News-O-Matic, digital news media for North American 7-12 year-olds.
Jean-Sébastien Decaux buys Terre Sauvage and Alpes Magazine from Bayard - 20/06/2024
- Date the magazines were founded - "Terre Sauvage": 1986 - "Alpes Magazine": 1990
- - 9 permanent employees
- - Around 50 contributors
- - Cumulative net circulation around 30,000 newsstand copies
- - Less than 20,000 subscriptions
Cafeyn organizes itself to pursue its founder's disappearing strategy - 20/12/2023
- Cafeyn is a news streaming platform that aggregates nearly 3,000 international media and integrates an average of one each week
- Cafeyn has around 2.5 million users in all its markets.
- Death of its chairman and founder, Ari Assuied
- The group has grown from around 30 employees to around 200 today.
- Plans to consolidate the digital kiosk market and internationalize Cafeyn
- Ongoingacquisition of competitor Readly in non-Scandinavian markets, including France.
- Bonnier is to acquire 90% of Readly 's capital in order to delist it and enable the sale of its non-Scandinavian activities to Cafeyn (it already owns over 75%).
- This acquisition will make Cafeyn the leading news distribution platform in Europe
- Cafeyn, the news streaming platform , is already present in several countries, including the UK and Canada - both of which are experiencing strong growth -, the USA, Ireland, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands - where Cafeyn acquired rival Blendle in 2020 - and Luxembourg.
- In France, the arrival of a new competitor, PassPresse, launched by Prisma Media, and the end of the distribution partnership with Canal+ (a subsidiary of Vivendi, like Prisma Media).
McPhy signs a major contract in Germany for the supply of electrolysers - 18/12/2023
- The company has won a contract in Germany valued at 60 million euros.
- This is the largest contract ever signed by the company.
- The company expects sales of 20 million euros in 2023, 36 million euros in 2024 and 71 million euros in 2025.
Webtoon: Media Participation's Ono platform joins forces with Korean studio - 29/11/2023
- Ono is the platform of France's third-largest publishing company, Média-Participations.
- Ono moves into the original territory of the webtoon.
- Onovient joins forces with Kenaz, South Korea's largest independent webtoon producer Creation of a 50/50 joint venture
- Kenaz works with over 400 creators worldwide.
- Kenaz supplies content to various international clients, including Piccoma (Kakao), Webtoon (Naver), Apple Books (Japan and USA) and ByteDance (TikTok) in China.
- Ono plans to produce webtoons in France in the coming months.
- Translation and lettering costs from Korean to French are three times higher than the purchase of rights for Ono.
- The Ono platform, launched eight months ago, boasts over 250,000 downloads.
- Ono's ambition is to become the third major player in the sector in Europe, behind Naver and Piccoma.
- Ono's catalog of web series will total 300 by the end of the year.
- Ono has acquired some 50 series from Verytoon and 100 from Delitoon.
- Ono plans to offer manga on their platform early next year.
In the Figaro Group fold, Gala magazine redoubles its ambitions - 17/11/2023
- The Figaro Group acquired the weekly magazine Gala from Vivendi and its subsidiary Prisma Media in 2023.
- Gala has changed ownership twice in three years, passing from Bertelsmann to Vivendi at the end of 2021, then to the Figaro Group in 2023.
- Gala employs 60 journalists out of a total workforce of 70.
- The Gala brand has over 9.4 million subscribers on TikTok, 60% of whom are located abroad.
- Gala is the leading European media account on TikTok, and the fourth largest worldwide.
- With the acquisition of Gala, the Figaro Group will reach 14.6 million women, representing 52% of the female population in France.
- In 2022, Gala's sales amounted to 40 million euros, half of which came from advertising.
- Gala's paid circulation in France is 123,123 copies a week, including 20,000 subscribers to the glossy magazine.
- Gala has a daily readership of over 1.1 million.
- During the Cannes Film Festival, Gala publishes a 96-page daily in French and English, with a circulation of 15,000.
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