SPH Media CEO says ad rates are based on independent third-party readership data, not on circulation numbers

SINGAPORE — Advertisers of SPH Media were told that advertising rates offered by the media group are not based on circulation data but independent third-party readership data.

According to Straits Times, SPH Media’s chief executive officer Teo Lay Lim told the media group's advertisers via an email on Tuesday evening following the report by Wake Up Singapore (WUSG) on Sunday about its senior executives being taken to task or made to leave due to issues linked to circulation numbers.

Ms Teo told SPH Media's advertisers that circulation data is not used as a basis for SPH Media’s advertising packages.

“Our media rates and advertising packages are based on reach and readership of individual titles, and our SPH Media solutions as a whole,” she wrote.

Circulation data is a count of how many copies of a publication are distributed, such as through regular subscriptions or off-the-shelf purchase, while readership is an estimate of how many readers a publication has, wrote ST.

Ms Teo added that data on reach and readership is collected periodically via a survey panel that is statistically representative of the Singapore population.

She said: “This data is obtained from and verified by independent third-party research agencies, namely GfK.”

Ms Teo also said: “As a trusted and responsible organisation, we look forward to continuing our relationship with you. Thank you for your understanding and support.”

ST quoted an SPH Media spokesman who said on Tuesday that circulation numbers reflect the paid customer base, which is one of the key metrics tracked by media companies.

SPH Media to get a lot of stick going forward, says Editor-in-Chief

According to ST, Mr Wong Wei Kong, editor-in-chief of SPH Media’s English/Malay/Tamil Media (EMTM) Group, had sent out an e-mail to staff on Tuesday morning to address the news of the issues with circulation data.

Mr Wong said that the review of circulation numbers, which began in March 2022, was started “based on certain observations”.

The review period reached back to before SPH Media became a new company, he said. The SPH Media spokesman on Monday said the review period was from September 2020 to March 2022.

Mr Wong said that even as the review was in progress, “we rebased our numbers, once it (was) clear the historical bases may be inaccurate”. “This affected us materially, and within EMTM, both ST and BT rebased our figures,” he said, referring to The Straits Times and The Business Times.

He added: “All this was painful, but necessary to put right what was once unknown, but now known. There is no choice – we cannot possibly continue reporting numbers that would now be questioned. However, with the rebasing and the steps taken, it is important to note that the numbers we are reporting now will bear up to scrutiny.”

He noted that even with these measures, the company will be getting “a lot of stick going forward”.

He said: “We will have to get through this together, but knowing that it is part of the journey to put things right. Ultimately, when the dust settles, we will still be judged by our stories, our content and how we go about doing our work, so I hope we will keep our focus on that even with what is going on.”

Fabrication of circulation data

It has been said that staff involved in the issues linked to circulation numbers that were revealed by the internal review had been taken to task or had left the company.

The inconsistencies in the reporting of data resulted in a discrepancy of between 85,000 and 95,000 daily average copies across all titles, which represents 10 per cent to 12 per cent of the reported daily average circulation.

The spokesman also said that the company had immediately taken steps to strengthen processes.

The inconsistencies in the reporting of the data discovered during a review included the reporting of circulation data, lapsed contracts continued to be counted into circulation data; copies that were printed, counted for circulation and then destroyed; as well as double-counting of subscriptions across multiple instances. A project account was also injected with additional funding over a period of time to purchase fictitious circulation.

In SPH's annual report 2020, it wrote, "Total print and digital circulation numbers reported are in accordance with the rules set by Audit Bureau of Media Consumption Singapore (ABC) in 2016."

ABC, in its guidebook, writes, "Any attempt by a publisher member to obtain higher ABC certification by fraudulent means or manipulation of books and records or by any other manipulative tactics inter-alia including non-compliance of audit guidelines, then in all such cases, Audit Committee and/or Bureau’s Council of Management would consider appropriate strict action inter-alia not limited to circulation figures being treated as “Not Accepted” for certification for a particular duration but also including termination of membership (as per provision in Articles of Association) and/or any other punitive action which the Bureau’s Council of Management may decide."

TOC has written to ABC for its comment on the matter.

SPH Media Trust supported by Govt for up to S$180 million annually over the next five years

The media publications of the former Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) were incorporated as SMT, a Company Limited by Guarantee (CLG), on 19 July 2021 after being cut off from SPH due to its declining revenue. They include ST and The Business Times, as well as Lianhe Zaobao, Shin Min Daily News, Berita Harian and Tamil Murasu. SPH was subsequently delisted in May 2022 after the restructuring.

At the Parliamentary sitting on 15 February last year, the Minister for Communications and Information (MCI) Josephine Teo told Parliament that the government will fund the newly set-up not-for-profit media entity, SPH Media Trust (SMT), to the tune of up to S$180 million annually over the next five years.

“This will provide SMT with more capital to invest in the future while ensuring that they are able to sustain their current operations,” Ms Teo said.

To ensure accountability for using public funds, Ms Teo said that her ministry will monitor SMT’s performance closely through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that track the total reach and engagement of SMT’s products.

“SMT is required to provide progress update reports to MCI on a half-yearly basis,” she said. “This allows MCI to track their progress and for the Government to help achieve its desired outcomes when necessary.”

Responding to media queries, a Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) spokesperson said the ministry has asked SPH Media to share its full findings and has recently received SPH Media's internal report on the matter.

"MCI will undertake our own review to determine if these inconsistencies in circulation data affect the decision to fund, and the amount the Government committed to fund SPH Media. MCI expects SPH Media to fully cooperate with our review,” said the spokesperson.

A Singapore Exchange (SGX) spokesman, in response to queries, said: “We are reviewing the circulation information, including its materiality and time of occurrence.”