Personal Identifier Questions

Personal Identifier Questions (PIQs) are set by ABC and are used as a means of audit verification. View more information.

Latest Changes

March 2012

• Social Media: You can now report a basic measure of social media audience(s) on a product’s ABC Multi-Platform Certificate. Examples of what could be reported are Facebook ‘Likes’ or Twitter ‘Followers’. This can be reported from April 2012.

Previous Changes

December 2011

• Issues to be reported: A flowchart has been added to the rules which should be used to determine whether issues should be reported or not.  Click on the above link to view the flowchart.

September 2011

• Newstrade multipacks: From audit periods ending January 2012 the rules relating to multipacks have been amended where only one publication in the pack is included in an ABC claim. 
• Monitored Free Distribution:   From audit periods ending January 2012 the breakout of distribution points will include two new categories – Food and drink outlets, and Other travel points. The category for trains will be removed.
• Monitored Free Distribution: With effect from October 2011 changes have been made to clarify the information and requirements that are expected for Monitored Free Distribution. These include the right for ABC to visit or call distribution points to verify the distribution process, changes to the information on the Master Distribution list of distribution points and the assessment of management controls covering the distribution process as part of the audit. ABC will agree and work with publishers to ensure these are achieved.

 May 2011

• Submission of circulation claims: Confirmation that there will be a common deadline date for June and December reporting cycles for ROI titles

December 2010

• Bulk sales: From reporting periods ending January 2011 onwards the claim for any bulk sales where the copies are distributed via the newstrade as part of a multipack with another publication must be restricted to the net sales of the multipack.
• Optional reporting periods: The optional reporting periods available for titles newly registered with ABC have been simplified.
• Appeal procedure: Where a member appeals against a decision in relation to an audit or inspection, the timescale within which the Director of Audit will investigate and provide a decision has been amended from 5 working days to 10 working days.
• The Personal Identifier Questions (PIQ) for 2011 have been set.

 June 2010

• Free Digital Edition copies: It is clarified that all hard bounce backs should be excluded from free digital edition copy claims, not just SMTP 550 errors.
• Documentation required for ABC purposes: To improve the clarity of the documentation which you must make available for ABC audit, sections 5.13 to 5.13.3 of the Reporting Standards have been rewritten. The evidence required in support of copies sold at exhibitions or events has been added to.