Paid print and digital circulation

This audit service is for publications that sell their copies. The audit verifies an average number of sales across print and digital versions per issue and is an ABC service.

Learn more about the ABC.

Publication types in this category

• Consumer Magazines

• National & Metropolitan Newspapers

• Newspaper Inserted Magazines (NIMs)

• Regional Newspapers

• Agricultural Publications

• Country Press

• Indigenous & Ethnic Newspapers

• Overseas Newspapers

What does the audit show?

An ABC audit reports the Average Total Paid Sales per issue, and detailed reporting of Average Net Paid Print Sales (ANPPS) and Average Net Paid Digital Sales per issue.

The audit looks at every issue published in the audit period, and checks sales for each issue. The process begins with the print run and then establishes the volume of copies sold and the volume that remain unsold.

Only paid for copies are reported:

• Copies sold through retailers, wholesale distributors, sellers and other regular channels of distribution or sale who pay a Wholesale Price for the Publication (this includes channels such as newsagents and supermarkets and many more).

• Copies that are sold at the Cover Price to an individual.

• Copies that are sold as Individual Subscriptions.

ABC reporting for print copies includes categories where you distribute your publication, such as: Accommodation & Hotel Sales, Airline Sales, Bundled Sales, School Sales, Tertiary Education Subscription Sales, and Event Sales. 

We also identfy the % of sales of print and digital copies sold in a package, along with the types of digital products bought, including replica editions, app and website paywall subscriptions. 

All data is available to members via our data portal.

Reporting periods

ABC data is reported six-monthly:

• January to June – reported in early August

• July to December – reported in early February

Registration

There is a membership per masthead, based on a sliding scale of circulation starting at $541.35 (inc GST) per financial year for publications with circulation under 20k.

Audit fees are charged based on the type of publication, volume and audit frequency starting from $330. per audit.

PAID PRINT & DIGITAL PUBLISHERS JOIN TODAY

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Free and controlled print

This audit service is for publications that distribute all or a large portion of their copies for free (although sold copies can be accounted for). The audit verifies the average distribution per issue and is a CAB service

Learn more about the history of the CAB.

Publication types in this category

• Business & Professional Publications (including membership publications)

• Specialty Publications

• Community Newspapers

• Community Language Publications/Newspapers
   

What does the audit show??

The audit establishes the Average Net Distribution (AND) per issue of a publication in a defined audit period and reports how the publication was distributed to the recipients.

The audit process is quite straightforward, commencing with proof of printing and then followed by proof of distribution, and distribution method, to establish the average net distribution per issue. The audit looks at every issue published in the audit period.

All AMAA members have access to our data portal. 

Reporting periods

There are two reporting periods each year:

• October to March - reported in May

• April to September - reported in November

The number of audits required per year is dependent on the number of issues published: 

Registration

Membership is $544.50 (inc GST) from July to June each year per masthead. An amount of $622 is charged per audit. The type of publication and the number of issues you publish per year will determine how many times you need to be audited, as outlined above.

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