A leader in news and opinion

Vocento is the leading media group in Spain, with a major national, regional and local presence. In 2015 Vocento consolidated its leadership of the general press sector with average daily sales of 346,219 (kiosk sales and individual subscriptions), for market share of circulation of 24.8%, more than 10 p.p. more than the number two media group (source: OJD 2015 data, data since July not certified). It was also the leader in readership, according to the 3rd EGM survey of 2015, with more than 2.5 million readers, around one million readers more than the number two group. It is in the top ten in Spain on the Internet with over 18.4 million unique monthly (source: comScore, December 2015).

The regional newspapers maintained their leadership in their regions and across Spain. Average daily circulation was 283,586 copies (Source: OJD 2015, July to December not certified), equivalent to market share of 24.7% in the regional press market. The regional press was also the leader in terms of readership, with more than two million readers (Source: EGM 3rd survey), and online, with more than 18 million unique monthly users (source: comScore MMX Multiplataforma, December 2015).

In September 2015, El Correo launched a new digital subscription version, Correo ON+, a step up in quality from elcorreo.com with a new business model. Correo ON+ offers exclusive content, apps, unlimited access to the website, discounts and promotions. The aim is to meet the new demands of users and to provide accurate, up-to-date, immediate and professional information.

ABC has continued to increase its market share and has the second highest kiosk sales and individual subscriptions in the Madrid region, at 107,877 copies (source: OJD 2015, July to December not certified). ABC has redesigned its website and was the first newspaper with separate PC and mobile sites, prioritising interactivity, integration with social networks and new formats for reaching users.

Vocento’s supplements and women’s magazines have more than 3.5 million readers, according to the 3rd EGM survey, and are among the most widely read publications in Spain.

Another statistic which reflects the group’s adaptation to digital and its commitment to making information accessible to users is that by the end of the year Vocento had six million followers in total on Twitter and Facebook.

Vocento is also committed to plurality. Thanks to the talent and hard work of its editorial teams, the group’s newspapers each year publish exclusives, in-depth features, and news stories which all provide high quality and accurate content and constructive opinions.

The year was marked by four elections. ABC printed special editions for all of them, with real time coverage online. ABC followed the same approach for the tragic terrorist attacks in Paris and its coverage won plaudits for its quality, range and content. Scoops uncovered by the newspaper included the irregular financing of Podemos and scandals in Andalusia and Catalonia. Highlights in the sports section include doping and other scandals in tennis and football.

Vocento’s regional newspapers are independent but the editorial teams work as a network with a shared system of creating and sharing content, transforming working procedures and developing new projects and products. The regional newspapers and websites also have the same local/global vision, with international correspondents and complete coverage of news, so that users do not have to go to another website. The aim is to satisfy the needs of each region, based on a reputation for independence and credibility, guaranteeing the profitability of each brand. Each of the titles is the circulation leader in their region, with total market share of 24.7% (source: OJD 2015), while the portals are online leaders with more than 18 million unique monthly users (Source: comScore December 2015).

The group’s newspapers, whatever their region, attract readers of all shades of opinion. More than 70% of the newspaper sales in Álava and Vizcaya are accounted for by El Correo, with the remaining 30% going to other national and regional titles. In Guipúzcoa, El Diario Vasco has over 83% of circulation, with the other titles on only 17%. In Santander, El Diario Montañés has 72% share. The same pattern holds across Spain (source: OJD 2015 data, data since July not certified).

In 2015, Vocento continued to pursue a strategy based on leading brands, profitability, effectiveness and free cash flow generation. In 2016 the group will remain focused on its continuing transformation.

Vocento will focus on: accelerating the digital business, developing new sales strategies and partnerships to increase advertising revenues; reducing net costs, improving profitability and increasing comparable EBITDA; and applying a range of measures to continue generating cash flows from the ordinary business.

It should be noted the group is fully committed to adapting its content for digital and to the new needs of its readers. In March 2016, Vocento’s newspapers adopted the new standard for news developed by Google and the media sector, the Accelerated Media Pages (AMP), which makes for faster mobile loading of news stories. This reflects the group’s permanent effort to improve the user experience of its content on new devices.

CM Vocento, the group’s media sales business, reached in February 2016 an agreement with Ecoprensa, the Publisher of El Economista, to manage the online and print advertising sales of the title. The portfolio of products managed by CMVocento has been strengthened by the addition of an excellent vehicle for national campaigns or local segmentation, with a very attractive user profile for advertisers.