Metro newspaper

[adc82140]

I believe in the early days it was owned by the same parent company as the Evening Standard, and many of the articles were rehashes of the previous day's as then paid for Standard.

 

[Richardr]

The owners of the Metro pay for distribution rights - it is possible that certain contracts come to an end, and aren't continued by either the paper or the railway / bus company. Either a deal can't be reached, or they decide not to distribute in that area.

 

[jon0844]

I believe in the early days it was owned by the same parent company as the Evening Standard, and many of the articles were rehashes of the previous day's as then paid for Standard.

Now it's part of the Daily Mail and Metro will often feature stories that were published days or weeks previous in the Mail, in order to fill pages. I am not sure if any content was/is shared the other way, nor if this is a big thing now as it seems they have just slashed the number of pages instead.

 

[52290]

I picked one up on the 111 Stagecoach bus from Preston to Leyland yesterday. It seemed to be following the Daily Mail line of how wonderful Kate is and how horrible Harry and Meghan are. I wonder why?

 

[Ivor]

Now it's part of the Daily Mail and Metro will often feature stories that were published days or weeks previous in the Mail, in order to fill pages. I am not sure if any content was/is shared the other way, nor if this is a big thing now as it seems they have just slashed the number of pages instead.

Yes on page count I’ve also noticed the Evening Standard for a good while is very reduced.

I picked one up on the 111 Stagecoach bus from Preston to Leyland yesterday. It seemed to be following the Daily Mail line of how wonderful Kate is and how horrible Harry and Meghan are. I wonder why?

The Mail has always loved a ‘Royal story’ which is fair enough but sometimes the number of pages given over are unreal. I bought a Mail today (mainly because the choice in the supermarket was depleted) but again there is two pages featuring the King’s Transylvania retreat & front page & inner page on how Carrie will “really have her hands full” with her third child with Bo-Jo (his 8th)……it’s tough at the top!

Anyway mini rant over, was often good especially when travelling to grab a Metro to browse albeit the news wasn’t always up to date.

 

[GatwickDepress]

Looks like the Metro rack was removed from the Stagecoach bus I took this morning in Hastings. Great news, since now the whole luggage rack is actually available to use.

 

[Hardcastle]

Still available at Edinburgh this week.

 

[johnnychips]

In general I can’t see how this model of a newspaper works - though evidently it must do. When you think about all the copies printed and distributed throughout the UK, and the costs that entails, I wonder how much the advertisers pay? Evidently they must think it worthwhile too.

 

[Richardr]

In general I can’t see how this model of a newspaper works - though evidently it must do. When you think about all the copies printed and distributed throughout the UK, and the costs that entails, I wonder how much the advertisers pay? Evidently they must think it worthwhile too.

Eventually many newspapers will go away, as circulation continues to drop. However, the Metro has the highest circulation today. It also has much lower distribution costs than other newspapers as, rather than being distributed to every shop in every village in the country, it is just distributed in mass to the main transport access points.

 

[westv]

I believe in the early days it was owned by the same parent company as the Evening Standard, and many of the articles were rehashes of the previous day's as then paid for Standard.

I remember when London had the Evening Standard and the Evening News.

 

[jon0844]

Eventually many newspapers will go away, as circulation continues to drop. However, the Metro has the highest circulation today. It also has much lower distribution costs than other newspapers as, rather than being distributed to every shop in every village in the country, it is just distributed in mass to the main transport access points.

That must still cost a reasonable amount. They must remove the old papers, clean the stand, and put in the new edition - and the stations can require quite a bit of driving. That's why I can see that to save money, they'll simply stop putting them at some stations.

I suppose if WHS does the distribution, it might be an acceptable cost if there's, say, a newsagent at the station that will be getting deliveries also.

 

[Ivor]

I remember when London had the Evening Standard and the Evening News.

Me too, fond memories after getting off the bus at Tooting Bec after a 3pm kick off at Stamford Bridge & waiting with a bit of a crowd for delivery of the Saturday Classified football editions to see the other results, league tables, reports of the then First Division.

The paper seller seemed to take a small mint in a matter of minutes.

Wow I’m old!

That must still cost a reasonable amount. They must remove the old papers, clean the stand, and put in the new edition - and the stations can require quite a bit of driving. That's why I can see that to save money, they'll simply stop putting them at some stations.

I suppose if WHS does the distribution, it might be an acceptable cost if there's, say, a newsagent at the station that will be getting deliveries also.

When I was working The West Coastway stations that I would man on my own like West Worthing, Durrington, Goring etc which are small stations with no shops I was forever tidying the racks or retrieving blown away or discarded Metros off the platforms. They seem to be the type of stations now where they’ve been pulled.

 

[Richardr]

That must still cost a reasonable amount. They must remove the old papers, clean the stand, and put in the new edition - and the stations can require quite a bit of driving. That's why I can see that to save money, they'll simply stop putting them at some stations.

I suppose if WHS does the distribution, it might be an acceptable cost if there's, say, a newsagent at the station that will be getting deliveries also.

They never have covered the country, but only certain areas with high commuter traffic. I don't think they cover Wales, or any but the central belt in Scotland, for example. There are plenty of parts of England they don't cover, e.g. much further west from Weston-Super-Mare. They will only distribute to stations where they get a minimum number of readers to make a profit (and where they can get a distribution deal, albeit there is no real competition for that today).

 

[Jimini]

Eventually many newspapers will go away, as circulation continues to drop. However, the Metro has the highest circulation today. It also has much lower distribution costs than other newspapers as, rather than being distributed to every shop in every village in the country, it is just distributed in mass to the main transport access points.

Spot on. It’s a high volume / low drop point model that’s operated, and sits completely separate to other (paid for) press distribution. It’s also printed a lot earlier than the nationals, so they have more time on their side.

In general I can’t see how this model of a newspaper works - though evidently it must do. When you think about all the copies printed and distributed throughout the UK, and the costs that entails, I wonder how much the advertisers pay? Evidently they must think it worthwhile too.

You’ve answered your own question to be honest — ad revenues cover it. Same with the Standard (when Independent Print Ltd. bought it from DMG and made it free they opted for the same financial / “sales” model).

Who remembers the “thelondonpaper / London Lite” stand off between Rupert Murdoch (News International) and Lord Rothermere (Daily Mail) respectively, back in 2006-9? There used to be around 750,000 copies of each of those being thrown at people in the evening rush hour, on top of the Standard still being a paid for product on newsstands.

 

[jon0844]

I remember the battle well (along with the lads mags Nuts and Zoo but that's for another thread). It all got a bit crazy, but it ultimately got the Evening Standard to go free, which remained even after the others threw in the towel.

The amount of litter was immense, and I remember huge bins to try and stop people just dumping papers everywhere. Often people picked up every free paper (City AM, Shortlist etc).

What a time to be alive! So much waste, and barely much worth reading in any of them.

Metro has a worldwide reputation, even if the foreign ones are unrelated, so may never truly die - but even Metro tried to get people to read on their phone/tablet/e-book or on a desktop PC at work, perhaps without success.

 

[WatcherZero]

Now it's part of the Daily Mail and Metro will often feature stories that were published days or weeks previous in the Mail, in order to fill pages. I am not sure if any content was/is shared the other way, nor if this is a big thing now as it seems they have just slashed the number of pages instead.

Its always been owned by the Daily Mail Group since founding (though they traded under the name Associated Newspapers until 2013 they were owned by the family trust 'Daily Mail & General Trust Ltd') Metro is more centre and politically neutral than the other titles in the group, Daily Mail Group also owned the London Evening Standard until 2009 when it was sold off for a pound as unprofitable and the i, the tabloid version of the Independent which is also politically neutral, the Independent sister paper to the i which shut in 2016 was Liberal aligned.

The freesheets used to be more locally written but with falling revenue have just ended up reprinting the same pool of stories, similary the Northern edition of The Big Issue which had separate editorship has recently shuttered due to falling demand and they will now just distribute the southern version in the North.

 

[Richardr]

The i is still owned by the Daily Mail Group.

When the Metro first started there were separate regional versions run by the local daily newspaper - e.g. the Liverpool edition was run by the Mirror Group (Trinity Mirror at the time) who owned the Liverpool Post. These versions were gradually merged into the London version. I think it is just Scotland that has a separate Metro now.

 

[westv]

The i is still owned by the Daily Mail 8Group.

When the Metro first started there were separate regional versions run by the local daily newspaper - e.g. the Liverpool edition was run by the Mirror Group (Trinity Mirror at the time) who owned the Liverpool Post. These versions were gradually merged into the London version. I think it is just Scotland that has a separate Metro now.

As I mentioned earlier when it first launched in 1999 Metro was only available in London.

 

[Richardr]

Yes - I should have said when each regional edition started - the Liverpool one I mentioned was near the back of the queue, and opened six or seven years after the London edition.

 

[londonbridge]

Noticed this at Cheam today.

Picture of a handwritten notice attached to the platform wall which says:

We will not be receiving the metro now at Cheam station! Apologies!

 

[Ivor]

Noticed this View attachment 136026 at Cheam today.

Staff must have been getting fed up with being asked constantly.

I’ve not been lately to bigger stations like East Croydon, Clapham Junction etc but some of the replies here there are still stations with them.

Stagecoach buses in West Sussex in the main seem to have removed the Metro display bins set into the luggage area.

 

[Typhoon]

In East Kent stations like Faversham and Sittingbourne seem to have lost their bins, not certain about Medway but they were available in Gravesend (and plentiful in Tilbury).

Stagecoach buses in West Sussex in the main seem to have removed the Metro display bins set into the luggage area.

I hope East Kent keep theirs, useful for putting bottles and cans that have been consigned to the floor by their previous owner even if only temporarily.

 

[Howardh]

Stagecoach buses in West Sussex in the main seem to have removed the Metro display bins set into the luggage area.

Really annoyed me, having those paper bins where our luggage should go. Many a time I've dumped my suitcase on top of the pile of newspapers!

 

[Ivor]

I hope East Kent keep theirs, useful for putting bottles and cans that have been consigned to the floor by their previous owner even if only temporarily.

You expect people not to litter or dispose of properly? Joking apart streets, public places, highways, transport etc gets worse when venturing out.

Really annoyed me, having those paper bins where our luggage should go. Many a time I've dumped my suitcase on top of the pile of newspapers!

It’s you that was stopping me pick up a Metro without a struggle with your luggage just dumped on top

 

[Howardh]

You expect people not to litter or dispose of properly? Joking apart streets, public places, highways, transport etc gets worse when venturing out.

It’s you that was stopping me pick up a Metro without a struggle with your luggage just dumped on top

Probably, or I could just dump my luggage on your lap instead!!

 

[BrandanM]

No longer available at Cambridge North

 

[Falcon1200]

The Metro has not been available at my local station, Neilston, for several months, and the dispenser has now gone too, so clearly it is not coming back! Yet it is still supplied further up the line at Muirend, presumably because it is closer to Glasgow? Another station I use regularly, Paisley Gilmour Street, despite its busyness, is also now Metro-less.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Altrincham had them this morning.

 

[Ivor]

The Metro has not been available at my local station, Neilston, for several months, and the dispenser has now gone too, so clearly it is not coming back! Yet it is still supplied further up the line at Muirend, presumably because it is closer to Glasgow? Another station I use regularly, Paisley Gilmour Street, despite its busyness, is also now Metro-less.

Altrincham had them this morning.

Not sure how big the stations are you both mentioned but strange some still have & others don’t but looking at replies it seems majority now with no offering.

I looked on their web site & Twitter & no clue to the reason why distribution is being pulled on both railway & bus routes bus assume it’s a financial consideration with maybe declining revenue in advertising?

 

[johntea]

Leeds used to have two gentlemen handing out Metro papers to passengers every (weekday) morning at one point many years ago, they were rather enthusiastic about their job!

Something else you don't seem to see at Leeds any more are people handing out samples of the latest food and/or drink products which also used to be quite a regular thing!