The Evening Standard will be a free paper from the 12th October

[foxinsocks]

isn't the whole business a sad affair?

Murdoch lost millions on that free paper enterprise of his. No doubt the Standard has lost similarly. And now they are essentially conceding defeat and having to offer their paper as free too (will merge with the free evening one - london lite - I understand)

Gosh. How does the thinking go though, given that even Murdoch couldn't make money with free papers?

I don't know. They've spun it as a great opportunity but it must be a cost saving measure.

Just have visions of the free shite that comes through our doors (the local papers!). Maybe they'll have to take on loads of sex massage ads!

Strange. Must say I never read the Standard it is a Tory rag

Isn't it owned by the KGB or something?

I used to read it a lot when Matthew Norman was doing a (non sports) column. His column was vaaary funny.

yes, owned by the Russians. Like a lot of London it seems.

The Evening Standard's been giving away about half of it's circulation to things like hotels anyway.

So giving away the other half free will enable them to boost their circulation figures. Presumably they hope to make more from advertising while not loosing as much circulation revenue as you might think.

It'll be interesting to see what happens to the London Lite, the Evening Standard was sold off so they're not a part of the same company now.

it's said they will merge

they were in trouble long before the free paper thing tbh

The Evening Standard is a meaty paper where as the other evening free papers, especially Murdoch's, were/are light, pretty trashy and readable in about 15 minutes (if that).

So it will be interesting to see how a more substantial free paper fares.

The complication is that the free papers claim a higher actual readership compared to their circulation than "traditional" papers claim due to a copy passing around commuters.

If the paper's more substantial someone will hang on to it for more of their journey home, so not as many copies hanging around on trains, so less actual readers?

Associated could give or sell the London Lite to the KGB guy but that would totally remove their presence in the evening paper market, interesting times ahead.

Oh lord. I get do fed up with people thrusting free papers at me during my walk back to Euston in the evenings. Even if you are holding one they try to shove another one at you.

And they are such drivel - pages and pages on Amy Winehouse and the Pixies and all the other dreary slebs falling out of nightclubs.

Gaah. And they create such litter.

I guess that's all the evening standard sellers out of a job then

For some reason I hold them in higher regard than the people thrusting free papers at you - that is incredibly annoying, yes. Especially 2 of them stood at top of steps at Euston Square

yes and the ones where you get off a bus at Waterloo station

they completely block your path and if you are in a rush, it's a total pita

(like the one right outside the Houses of Parliament...those pavements are so crowded anyway)

Oh those Russians.........(as Boney Men would say)
Really annoyed about this as there is actually some substance to the Standard (as BadgersPaws states) and I can only presume that will decline further if it becomes a freebie. Don't think it is overly Tory either.