$722.6m
$X.Xm
3,570
695
$XXX.Xm
The internet's increasing importance has been challenging for magazine and directory publishers. Revenue is expected to drop at an annualised 10.7% over the five years through 2022-23, to $722.6 million. This trend includes an 8.3% fall in 2022-23, as growth in online platforms, and the increasing popularity of smartphones and tablets have changed how consumers access content. Demand for telephone directories has plummeted as consumers have increasingly used search engines and online directories to find information. Competition from digital content providers, social media platforms and other online media has taken away advertising revenue from printed publications. The circulation numbers of Australia's most popular mastheads have fallen over the period, further encouraging downstream media buying agencies to purchase advertising space elsewhere.The COVID-19 pandemic has further decreased revenue over the period. Magazines heavily rely on advertising revenue, which sharp declines in business confidence following the COVID-19 pandemic and rampant inflation have severely undermined. This trend has reduced businesses' willingness to purchase advertising space in industry products. Moreover, prolonged city-wide lockdowns in Melbourne and Sydney over the two years through 2021-22 disrupted distribution, accelerating declining circulation numbers. Associated mounting cost pressures have reduced profitability.Revenue is projected to continue to fall, but as operators create innovative advertising opportunities through interactive digital content, the speed of decline is set to slow. As consumers continue to migrate to digital products, niche magazines that target specific demographics or interest groups will likely fare better than general interest publications. Magazines that make their products hard to replace with online alternatives by offering high-quality or more in-depth content are also more likely to retain readership over the period. However, revenue generated from directory publishing is projected to continue declining rapidly. Industry revenue is forecast to fall at an annualised 3.3% over the five years through 2027-28, to $609.5 million.
Industry revenue has declined at a CAGR of 10.7 % over the past five years, to reach an estimated $722.6m in 2023.
Market size is projected to decline over the next five years.
Company | Market Share (%)
2023 | Revenue ($m)
2023 |
---|---|---|
Thryv | 223.3 | |
Are Media | 215.3 |
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Industry revenue is measured across several distinct product and services lines, including Home and garden magazines, Other magazines and periodicals and Women's magazines. Home and garden magazines is the largest segment of the Magazine and Directory Publishing in Australia.
Directories are falling out of favour as online platforms become ubiquitous
Industry players primarily publish magazines, directories, mailing lists and periodicals. Magazine and periodical publishers are included in the industry if they generate most of their revenue by selling printed publications and the advertising space within them. The industry excludes publishers that operate exclusively online, but includes online revenue from publishers that print physical publications.
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ANZSIC 5412 - Magazine and Directory Publishing in Australia
Get an indication of the industry's health through historical, current and forward-looking trends in the performance indicators that make or break businesses.
Magazine and directory circulation numbers have plunged over the past decade. Consumers have increasingly turned to online publications and search engines.
Learn about an industry's products and services, markets and trends in international trade.
Revenue from directories has fallen sharply over the past five years. The ease of access to the internet has made searches via search engines and other online platforms much ...
Discover where business activity is most concentrated in an industry and the factors driving these trends to find opportunities and conduct regional benchmarking.
New South Wales is home to the largest concentration of magazine and directory publishers. The state is home to large share of the population and many downstream businesses i...
Get data and insights on what's driving competition in an industry and the challenges industry operators and new entrants may face, with analysis built around Porter's Five Forces framework.
Market share concentration has declined over the past decade. The Yellow Pages and White Pages directories publisher's market share has plunged, with consumers instead using ...
Learn about the performance of the top companies in the industry.
The large publishers have changed hands in recent years. Directory publisher, Sensis, was acquired by US-based Thryv in March 2021. Pacific Magazines was acquired by Bauer Me...
Understand the demographic, economic and regulatory factors that shape how businesses in an industry perform.
Magazine and directory publishers must adhere to the Privacy Act 1988. Publishers must receive express consent before publishing personal content.
View average costs for industry operators and compare financial data against an industry's financial benchmarks over time.
Profit margins have declined as a share of revenue over the past five years. Demand has fallen while the cost of paper and printing has continued to rise.
Including values and annual change:
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Key data sources in Australia include:
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These sources include:
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The market size of the Magazine and Directory Publishing industry in Australia is $722.6m in 2024.
There are 695 businesses in the Magazine and Directory Publishing industry in Australia, which has declined at a CAGR of 4.9 % between 2018 and 2023.
The market size of the Magazine and Directory Publishing industry in Australia has been declining at a CAGR of 10.7 % between 2018 and 2023.
Over the next five years, the Magazine and Directory Publishing industry in Australia is expected to decline.
The biggest companies operating in the Magazine and Directory Publishing market in Australia are Thryv and Are Media
Home and garden magazines and Women's magazines are part of the Magazine and Directory Publishing industry.
The company holding the most market share in Australia is Thryv.
The level of competition is high and increasing in the Magazine and Directory Publishing industry in Australia.