Time Inc. advertising revenue still slow for October

Early indications for Time Inc., the magazine division of Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX), would seem to say that the fourth quarter is not going to be a barn burner. The Publisher's Information Bureau has announced figures for October 2006.

Time Inc.'s large weeklies did not do much during the month. For the year to date, People's ad revenue is up only 3.8% to $702.9 million on an ad page decrease of 1.8% for the period to 3,023. The numbers at Sports Illustrated were slightly worse. Ad revenue fell .1% to $505.6 million. Ad pages dropped 1.9% to 1,664. At the flagship, Time magazine showed an ad revenue increase of 4.9% to $512.2 million on a page increase of 2% to 1,793.

The magazines at the next level down did not do terribly well. Entertainment Weekly's ad revenue dropped 2.9% for the first ten months of the year to $189.8 million on an ad page fall-off of 7.3% to 1,347. Fortune's ad revenue is down 2.3% to $244.6 million on a drop of 4.3% in ad pages to 2,343. In Style's ad revenue rose 5.5% to $332.5 million. Ad pages fell .1% to 2,826.

For all magazines measured by PIB, the first ten months of revenue rose 4.1% and pages were up .4%. Not much to write home about for Time Inc. or the industry.

Douglas McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.