Barry McIlheney (pictured), Chief Executive of the PPA (Professional Publishers Association), says: “The PPA has serious misgivings over Postcomm’s decision to allow Royal Mail the flexibility to double the permitted price increases on bulk mail.
At a time when the Government is looking to the creative industries as a driver of economic growth, this is a shortsighted move.
Price increases of this level are tantamount to imposing a penalty tax on magazine publishers who are being forced to pay for Royal Mail’s inefficiencies. Given that distribution can account for up to half of total production costs, these increases will have serious implications for the delicately balanced economics of today’s magazine publishing environment.
Postcomm itself acknowledges the decline in mail volumes that are likely as a result of such price rises but we believe the effects will be even more serious in the long term. Publishers could be forced to cut circulations and direct mail volumes and to reduce future investment in subscriptions.
This move will also have the knock-on effect of negatively impacting on literacy standards, since magazines play a proven critical role in developing literacy among the UK population.
Overall, the PPA supports the principle that the Universal Service must be protected but we are in agreement with colleagues at the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) that raising funds at the expense of businesses is counter-productive.
We believe the proposed short-term fix of significant price rises could potentially cause long-term damage to the publishing sector, the wider mail industry and, ultimately, Royal Mail itself.”
About PPA
The PPA says: “The PPA promotes and protects the interests of print and online publishers of consumer and business media in the UK. The PPA has around 200 publishing companies in its membership, which collectively produce more than 2,500 consumer and business magazines and journals as well as digital media, data products and events.”
