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August 27, 2014updated 25 May 2016 3:17pm

Local World overtakes Newsquest and Johnston Press as regional press web traffic surges up

By William Turvill

Local World overtook Newsquest and Johnston Press in the first half of 2014 to become the UK's biggest regional newspaper group online in terms of monthly unique browsers.

According to ABC, between January and June, Local World recorded 16,395,037 average unique monthly browsers – up 90 per cent year on year.

Newsquest recorded 16,069,796 unique monthly browsers (up 48 per cent year on year). But it recorded a greater number of average unique daily users throughout the period than Local World – 936,909 (up 46 per cent) compared with 909,367 for Local World (up 95 per cent).

Johnston Press, meanwhile, recorded 15,513,943 unique monthly browsers (up 39 per cent) and 801,795 unique daily browsers (up 25 per cent).

The above graph, provided by Local World, shows the publisher's growth in online traffic for each month between January and June, with a comparison for 2013. 

The biggest individual website in the six-month period was the Scotsman.com, with 2,948,379 unique users a month on average – up 33 per cent year on year – and an average of 160,118 per day.

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The most improved website was the Scunthorpe Telegraph, with 415,294 unique users a month, up 116 per cent.

The only website audited by ABC in the six months to drop web users was the Gloucester Citizen/ Gloucestershire Echo, which had an average 505,126 unique users a month, which was down 2 per cent.

Trinity Mirror's regional media website are now auditly monthly, their figures for July 2014 can be viewed here. The most popular UK regional newspaper website is Trinity Mirror's Manchester Evening News with an average of 339,124 unique browsers per day.

Trinity Mirror's group digital total is 80.9m unique browsers per month, and 4.7m per day, bit this also includes its national titles.

A unique browser as measured by ABC is a different device accessing a website.

Here is the full set of regional online ABCs for the first half of 2014:

Title (publisher at top of group in bold) Avg daily uniques, Jan-June Avg monthly uniques, Jan-June Daily % chg y/y Monthly % chg y/y
Johnston Network 801,795 15,513,943 24.5% 39.20%
Blackpoolgazette.co.uk 29,540 413,293 52.2% 63.40%
Halifaxcourier.co.uk 12,558 184,400 5.7% 12.30%
LEP.co.uk 21,727 352,826 11.5% 14.40%
Peterboroughtoday.co.uk 18,948 297,735 31.3% 38.00%
Portsmouth.co.uk 38,253 572,171 34.3% 48.30%
Scotsman.com 160,118 2,948,379 33.8% 32.90%
Sunderlandecho.com 32,260 507,964 56.3% 54.60%
Thestar.co.uk 44,919 737,033 26.7% 35.60%
Yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk 61,506 870,101 44.2% 41.60%
Yorkshirepost.co.uk 28,658 634,973 43.2% 47.50%
Kent Messenger Ltd 66,287 1,218,261 91.7% 91.10%
Local World Network (Web) 909,367 16,395,037 95.1% 89.70%
Bristol Post (Web) 59,624 1,226,519 82.9% 85.30%
Cambridge News (Web) 40,326 777,299 47.5% 60.30%
Derby Telegraph (Web) 50,084 926,153 72.6% 77.60%
Gloucester Citizen/Gloucestershire Echo (Web) 25,519 505,126 -4.3% -2.20%
Grimsby Telegraph (Web) 30,127 500,580 41.8% 38.30%
Hull Daily Mail (Web) 62,181 964,047 61.2% 56.10%
Leicester Mercury (Web) 49,208 917,543 53.9% 51.20%
Lincolnshire Echo (Web) 22,465 461,144 41.6% 48.80%
Nottingham Post (Web) 53,591 986,733 41.9% 43.40%
Plymouth Herald (Web) 55,400 986,702 82.3% 97.40%
Scunthorpe Telegraph (Web) 20,715 415,294 100.9% 115.6%
South Wales Evening Post (Web) 40,726 828,486 67.2% 62.90%
Stoke Sentinel 46,570 857,587 53.6% 47.10%
Midland News Association Network 143,335 2,641,904 64.0% 67.7%
Expressandstar.com 106,231 1,948,019 60.9% 66.70%
Shropshirestar.com 41,952 825,568 74.2% 72.30%
Newsquest Media Group 936,909 16,069,796 45.5% 47.7%
dailyecho.co.uk 55,744 841,686 42.9% 43.0%
eveningtimes.co.uk 34,139 626,532 73.1% 81.0%
heraldscotland.com 87,795 1,828,830 37.2% 48.8%
lancashiretelegraph.co.uk 37,662 638,640 28.8% 35.0%
newsshopper.co.uk 24,293 479,207 47.6% 44.0%
Oxfordmail.co.uk 26,728 466,592 46.5% 46.0%
Swindonadvertiser.co.uk 24,748 348,975 16.8% 17.5%
theargus.co.uk 40,236 656,605 17.7% 20.0%
theboltonnews.co.uk 35,772 545,830 62.7% 59.2%
thenorthernecho.co.uk 43,916 808,356 47.0% 41.9%
thepress.co.uk 39,738 624,393 40.8% 36.7%
thetelegraphandargus.co.uk 45,225 712,217 44.6% 46.1%

Here are the individual titles in order of daily unique users:

Title Avg daily uniques, Jan-June Avg monthly unqiues, Jan-June Daily % chg y/y Monthly % chg y/y
Scotsman.com 160,118 2,948,379 33.8% 32.90%
Expressandstar.com 106,231 1,948,019 60.9% 66.70%
heraldscotland.com 87,795 1,828,830 37.2% 48.8%
Hull Daily Mail (Web) 62,181 964,047 61.2% 56.10%
Yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk 61,506 870,101 44.2% 41.60%
Bristol Post (Web) 59,624 1,226,519 82.9% 85.30%
dailyecho.co.uk 55,744 841,686 42.9% 43.0%
Plymouth Herald (Web) 55,400 986,702 82.3% 97.40%
Nottingham Post (Web) 53,591 986,733 41.9% 43.40%
Derby Telegraph (Web) 50,084 926,153 72.6% 77.60%
Leicester Mercury (Web) 49,208 917,543 53.9% 51.20%
Stoke Sentinel 46,570 857,587 53.6% 47.10%
thetelegraphandargus.co.uk 45,225 712,217 44.6% 46.1%
Thestar.co.uk 44,919 737,033 26.7% 35.60%
thenorthernecho.co.uk 43,916 808,356 47.0% 41.9%
Shropshirestar.com 41,952 825,568 74.2% 72.30%
South Wales Evening Post (Web) 40,726 828,486 67.2% 62.90%
Cambridge News (Web) 40,326 777,299 47.5% 60.30%
theargus.co.uk 40,236 656,605 17.7% 20.0%
thepress.co.uk 39,738 624,393 40.8% 36.7%
Portsmouth.co.uk 38,253 572,171 34.3% 48.30%
lancashiretelegraph.co.uk 37,662 638,640 28.8% 35.0%
theboltonnews.co.uk 35,772 545,830 62.7% 59.2%
eveningtimes.co.uk 34,139 626,532 73.1% 81.0%
Sunderlandecho.com 32,260 507,964 56.3% 54.60%
Grimsby Telegraph (Web) 30,127 500,580 41.8% 38.30%
Blackpoolgazette.co.uk (JP) 29,540 413,293 52.2% 63.40%
Yorkshirepost.co.uk 28,658 634,973 43.2% 47.50%
Oxfordmail.co.uk 26,728 466,592 46.5% 46.0%
Gloucester Citizen/Gloucestershire Echo (Web) 25,519 505,126 -4.3% -2.20%
Swindonadvertiser.co.uk 24,748 348,975 16.8% 17.5%
newsshopper.co.uk 24,293 479,207 47.6% 44.0%
Lincolnshire Echo (Web) 22,465 461,144 41.6% 48.80%
LEP.co.uk 21,727 352,826 11.5% 14.40%
Scunthorpe Telegraph (Web) 20,715 415,294 100.9% 115.6%
Peterboroughtoday.co.uk 18,948 297,735 31.3% 38.00%
Halifaxcourier.co.uk (JP) 12,558 184,400 5.7% 12.30%

 

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