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Northcliffe signs up to release web figures in six-monthly ABCe report

By Press Gazette

Regional newspaper publisher Northcliffe Media has signed up to release online traffic data via ABCe’s new six-monthly statistics.

The publisher will now release daily, weekly and monthly break-downs of unique visitors and page impressions twice a year for the Northcliffe Network of sites and the companion sites of the Leicester Mercury, Hull Daily Mail and Plymouth Herald.

ABCe said today the data will come with charts that show a ‘clear visual understanding of certified online activity”.

A spokesman for ABC said it was in advanced talks with other regional publishers and hoped that “others follow suit” and sign up. The bureau is describing Northcliffe as “one of the first” to sign up to the six-monthly certificate, implying that others have already agreed to release to take part.

Martyn Gates, ABC’s director of newspapers, said: ‘ABC and ABCe are continually developing reporting standards and with the introduction of the new six-month certificate, publishers such as Northcliffe Media will be able to demonstrate to advertisers, clearly and regularly, their cross platform performance.

‘Regional publishers with online titles can provide advertisers with figures which are credible, comparable and transparent by committing to have their site traffic figures independently verified to industry agreed standards.”

Previously only a few regional publishers have reported group-wide online traffic, often using different metric systems and releasing incomprehensive data. But the new six-monthly ABCe certificate, agreed by JICWEBS (Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards) requires continuous reporting and is designed to provide a uniform set of data for the industry.

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ABCe said that the audited data provided publishers with ‘robust currency on which media space can be bought and sold’and an independent measurement of a network’s audience.

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