Next week, the Chronicle & Echo will be going up in price by 10p to £1.10.
It is always a difficult decision to increase our cover price and, as the newspaper’s editor, I believe it is important to explain the reasoning behind the increase.
The Chronicle & Echo remains the best selling regional newspaper in Northamptonshire and, through our many digital platforms, reaches more people than ever before.
We are publishing more than 200 stories a week online and regularly producing a newspaper weighing in at more than 200 pages. Last week, more than 70,000 people came to our website, up around 35 per cent on the same week the previous year. In May alone our sports team produced 240 pages of coverage, most of which was dedicated to the Saints and Cobblers’ respective finals.
There is clearly a cost in doing this and, as has been widely reported across the industry, advertising revenues are continuing to be a challenge and can no longer be used to subsidise these costs at the same rate. We want to maintain the quality of the newspaper and our website and continue to invest in the way in which our editorial team covers the news, sport and features in your community and the ability of our advertising teams to offer the best package for businesses across the county.
We are very grateful to our readers and advertisers for their support and believe the price of £1.10 still offers excellent value for money. What else can you buy for that money that can be enjoyed over several days and gives you information that directly affects your neighbourhood? And it doesn’t need to cost you £1.10.
If you subscribe to the Chron you can save more than 30% off the normal price. Take a look at our advert on page 34. You can also log on to www.subscriptionline.co.uk/CEW to find out more.