Dutch free dailies compared
De Volkskrant compared the four Dutch dailies that are now available nation wide.
- Metro (1999) – €17.5m ads expenditure in Q1 2007, editorial staf: 28
- Spits (1999) – €13.5m ads expenditure in Q1 2007, editorial staf: 37
- De Pers (2007) – €1.7m ads expenditure in Q1 2007, editorial staf: 43
- DAG (2007) – no data on ads expenditure in Q1 2007, editorial staf: 45
Research company NewCom asked 1600 people about free papers. Although both Metro and Spits were known by 95% (new entries De Pers en DAG by less), free papers are rated less than paid newspapers. On a scale from 1 to 10 Metro scores 6.9; Spits 6.8, De Pers 7.0 and DAG 5.9. Paid papers have an average score of 7.9. When people read Metro, Spits or De Pers more than half of the readers read the whole paper; DAG is read entirely by 34%. Almost 30% of the people interviewed see free papers as a good substitute for paid papers. Of the four free dailies De Pers is seen as the most reliable (although less reliable than paid papers) while Metro is the most trusted brand. Spits is the free daily with the fastest news.