Membership Copies - Consumer Magazines

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Membership Copies [Print/Digital]

A single copy of an official Society publication distributed to a member of that society. 

Note: ‘Society’ throughout this section refers to the Society, Association or Organisation as appropriate.

Principles

1. The publication is an official publication of the Society

2. Single copy of an issue distributed to an individual who is a member of the Society (or an employee nominated under a corporate society membership) 

Requirements 

1. The publication is an official publication of the Society

1. You must be able to provide evidence that the publication is:

   1. An official publication of the Society; or

   2. Circulated as a member benefit of the Society.

2. Single copy of an issue distributed to an individual who is a member of the Society (or an employee nominated under a corporate society membership)  

1. Corporate members are members of the Society (companies or organisations) who pay the membership fee or fees and nominate employees as recipients of the publication. These recipients may be claimed as Society circulation.

2. Evidence of the individual’s Society membership (or organisation’s corporate membership and nominated employees) must be available.

3. You must be able to demonstrate the copy is distributed to the individual. For a digital copy:

   1. You must be able to demonstrate distribution either by the copy being delivered to a consumer or the consumer being notified of the availability of the issue to access. 

   2. If distribution/notification is by email, you must exclude Hard Bounces (non-delivery notices typically measured up to 24 hours after being sent).

4. You must retain a list of individual recipients for one designated issue each reporting period (the Audit Issue – see General Principles and Record Keeping section). In addition you must be able to recreate a list for any issue in the reporting period on request. Note:

   1. The list is to include details of the recipients of individually distributed print and digital copies across all circulation types, excluding those that are not available due to the nature of a third-party supplier relationship or represent a duplicate print copy or a duplicate digital copy to the same individual (which are ineligible for claiming).

   2. You must be able to identify the circulation category/type each copy is claimed in, and which copies, if any, represent a print and digital copy for an issue that are circulated to the same individual.

5. You cannot claim distribution of back issues. 

Guidance Available

Reporting

1. You will report Membership Copies as a single total average per issue over the Reporting Period, which will be broken out on the ABC Certificate as follows:

1. By print and digital copies, by total average Membership Copies over the period, by geographical type:

1. 1.  United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland

   2. Other Countries

2. The Society/Societies name(s) will also be reported on the ABC Certificate 

Guidance

G2. Single copy of an issue distributed to an individual who is a member of the Society (or an employee nominated under a corporate society membership) 

1. You must be able to prove copies have been distributed to members of the society. Evidence of membership will be requested for a sample of addressees at the audit. This evidence may be:

   1. By locating the addressee in a published list of society members, which covers the period of the Audit Issue.

   2. If the publisher is the society, by providing evidence that the addressee has paid their society membership fee for the period covering the Audit Issue.

   3. If the publisher is third-party to the society, written confirmation from the society that the sampled addressees were members at the date of distribution of the Audit Issue. Note: If you are publishing the publication for the society on a contract basis we will not consider you third party for ABC purposes – this means written confirmation from the society will not be acceptable as audit evidence of society membership.

2. Corporate membership example. 'A Ltd.' is a corporate member of Alpha Society. Four copies, addressed to individuals by name, are sent to four different people at A Ltd. These would constitute four valid corporate copies. Multiple copies to a single addressee cannot be claimed.