In order to understand how the newspaper business can continue in the future a quick look at how it has evolved through the years is helpful. Switzerland has always had a wide diversity of titles. Even if it as fallen in the last years, the number of titles per million of inhabitants is still very large in comparison to other countries:
Density rate of newspapers worldwide
(21)
The counterpart of this high number of press titles is that few of them exceed 50‟000 in circulation. This other graphic shows the global evolution of the titles and the circulation of the newspapers in Switzerland since 1939:
Subscription newspapers: evolution of the number of titles and circulation
(22)
A few observations: first the number of titles has always been decreasing (since 1939). It remains high though, as seen just before. Until 1986 the daily circulation has grown and after that year has decreased. The total circulation though, has continued to grow or at least remained stable after 1986. This indicates that the circulation of the daily newspapers is decreasing and that on the contrary titles that are published less times in the week is growing and compensates the fall of the daily newspapers.(23)
The picture is clear. The main players that are suffering since a few years back are the daily newspapers. The graphic tells that their circulation went from 3.5 million in 1986 to a little more than 2 millions twenty-two years later. This is a drop of 42%, a very significant number.
21 World Press Trends 2008
22http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/fr/index/themen/16/03/key/ind16.indicator.16010201.160201.html?open=160001#160001
23http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/fr/index/themen/16/03/key/ind16.indicator.16010201.160201.html?open=160001#160001
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