The company contributes the uptick in circulation primarily to the latest tightening of its paywall. Non-subscribers can now only read 10 articles per month; during the first year, they were able to read 20 per month. Digital subscriptions cost between $15 and $35 per month.
The paywall's growth, along with an increase in home-delivery and weekday single-copy prices, led to an 8% increase in circulation revenues for the quarter, which offset a continued decline in both print (-8%) and digital (-4%) advertising. The ad declines were led by declines in display and cost-per-click advertising at the About Group, which produces an ever-expanding catalog of guides on topics ranging from lawn care to magic tricks. Overall revenue growth was about 1% year-over-year.
The New York Times Co. reported an operating loss of $143.6 million for the quarter, attributed largely to a $194.7 million non-cash writedown for the About Group. In the same period a year ago, the company reported an operating profit of $31.5 million.