Periodicals Plunge in Single-Copy Sales Second Half of 2012

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Single-copy sales of magazines sank 8.2 percent over the second half of 2012, according to figures released by the Alliance for Audited Media (www.auditedmedia.com), formerly known as the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

Paid subscriptions during the period inched up less than 1 percent, according to the AAM figures. Baby boomers should take heart--AARP the Magazine (not to be confused with AARP, the opera) had the highest total paid and verified circulation, and Better Homes and Gardens and Game Informer also placing in the top five.

On the list of top 25 consumer magazines in the U.S. by single copy sales, the good news is that stalwarts Cosmopolitan topped the list and People came in fourth. The bad news is that in the second half of 2012, compared to the same period a year earlier, Cosmo was off 18 percent, and People, 12 percent, in single copy sales.