More mags, fewer profits, more part-timers

Here are some early highlights from an analysis of the just-published 2003-2004 data from Statistics Canada about the Canadian Periodical industry. (Comparisons are with the 1998-99 data and are for consumer magazines only.)

• The total number of reporting magazines went up from 860 to 1,085 (+26%)
  
• Advertising sales went up 30%
• Single copy sales went up 32%
• Subscription sales declined by $15 million or about 7%
  
• Total revenue was up 24%;
  
• Total profit was off by 2.7%;

• The percentage of magazines making a profit remained the same: 62%

• There were about 836 more full and part-time employees;
• The number of part-timers went up 46%; of full-time employees 13%;
  
• The 3,526 full-timers made an average of $48,000 a year (up 23%)
• The 1,401 part-timers made an average of $15,000 (up 67%)
  
• Freelance fees went up by about 16%;
• The average magazine spent about $40,000 a year on freelancers.