Deccan Chronicle increases ad rates

Hyderabad-based Deccan Chronicle Holdings, the publishers of English and Telugu dailies, said it plans to increase its advertisement tariffs for all editions by 50 per cent to offset a spurt in newsprint prices and a depreciation in the Indian currency against the dollar. The increase is probably the steepest in recent times.

The new rates, though not uniform, pertain to several of its categories, including classifieds and appointments advertisements. The revised rates will be effective from October. However, the company did not revise the popular ‘all editions colour’ advertisement rate, which will stay at Rs 2,660 per square centimetre.

Amit Shukla, chief executive officer of Sieger Solutions, which handles Deccan Chronicle’s advertising and internet divisions, said the tariff increase was necessitated by the rising newsprint prices and the falling rupee.

Newsprint costs have increased from $600 (Rs 27,600) a tonne to about $1,000 (Rs 46,000), pushing operating costs higher, Shukla said. Deccan Chronicle uses about 88,000 tonnes of newsprint per annum. The falling rupee has also added to the costs.