The Audit Bureau of Circulations' board of directors approved the modification of rules to require newspaper publishers to report average paid circulation for each day of the week.
In an announcement yesterday, the Schaumburg, IL-based circulation auditor also mandated publishers to report a five-day, Monday through Friday, combined daily average circulation.
The new rules take effect April 1 for newspapers with March-ending annual audits. They are effective at the beginning of new audit periods for ABC members with June, September and December audit cycles.
ABC's board also reprimanded members for infractions. EBSCO Consumer Magazine Services, an independent sales subscription agent, was unanimously censured for improper record keeping. The board has asked EBSCO to submit a plan of corrective action at its next meeting in July.
Following its July 2004 censure of the Chicago Sun-Times, the ABC board also formally censured two more Hollinger International newspapers. The Daily Southtown in Tinley Park, IL, and the Star, also in that town, misstated circulation figures.
Hollinger last year admitted to inflating circulation figures for these publications after an ABC censure of the Chicago Sun-Times.
The ABC board, whose directors comprise media, advertiser and agency executives, accepted the corrective measures adopted by Synapse Group Inc. The magazine subscription sales agent was censured last July for improper record keeping. ABC lifted Synapse's censure status.
Separately, ABC named Neal Lulofs as its vice president of corporate communications. He was previously senior manager of marketing communications at telecommunications firm MCI. Lulofs will oversee the 4,000-member ABC's corporate communications and public relations strategies.
Mickey Alam Khan covers Internet marketing campaigns and e-commerce, agency news as well as circulation for DM News and DMNews.com. To keep up with the latest developments in these areas, subscribe to our daily and weekly e-mail newsletters by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters
