MacAddict magazineis average circulation plummeted by almost 10,000 in the first six months of this year compared to the last six months of 2005, new figures released Wednesday from the publication auditing bureau BPA Worldwide revealed. The news that the magazineis average of issues distributed is now at an all-time low comes just days after it announced it would re-design and re-launch under a new name early next year.

A circulation statement obtained by The Mac Observer shows the average number of copies distributed of the Mac title to have been 120,052 for the six month period ending in June. That is a drop of 9,974 from the July to December period of 2005, which averaged 130,026.

The magazineis highest total circulation sales for the six month period was in February of this year when it sold 127,254 copies - 96,414 through subscriptions, 25,317 through news stand sales and 5,523 from free giveaways. The lowest month of copy sales was June at 112,095.

A breakout of circulation for the May 2006 issue showed individual subscriptions of 85,587, or 75 percent of the total circulation. Single-copy sales through retailers for May were 26,373, or 23 percent of the total circulation of 114,039.

According to the figures, more MacAddict readers live in California, where 20,577 of the 114,039 copies were sold in May 2006. New York state was second highest in May with circulation at 7,792, Florida was third at 5,286 and Texas was fourth at 5,067 copies. 7,142 issues in May were sold to readers in Canada.

The figures come on the heels of an announcement from the magazines parent company, Future Network USA, that it would re-vamp the magazine next year, including a name change. MacAddict will re-launch as Mac|Life next spring, "bigger, thicker, (and) better-looking," current editor-in-chief Rik Myslewski said in a comment to readers on the magazineis Web site.

Mr. Myslewski announced last week he would be stepping down as editor-in-chief, but would be remaining with the magazine in an as yet unannounced role. Mr. Myslewski joined the magazine as editor-in-chief in mid-2001, when the publications average circulation was 180,603.

The slide in 2006 readership was the seventh consecutive, half-year drop in circulation for MacAddict since the first six months of 2003, when it had an average circulation of 182,544. The magazine hit a high in circulation back in the December-ending period of 1999, when it averaged 194,567, according to BPA figures.

Averaging for the entire year, MacAddict has fallen from a qualified circulation of 191,156 in 2002, to 179,755 in 2003, to 163,819 in 2004, to 135,337 in 2005, to 120,052 in the first half of 2006. In terms of paid subscription copies, the magazine has dropped 53,000 copies to 92,047 since its heyday of over 145,000 in 2002. Single copy sales have fallen over 11,000 to 24,189 since 2002.

The precipitous change in MacAddict magazineis sales is not an exclusive problem, but rather a continuing virus plaguing the publishing industry, primarily in North America and Europe. Magazine and newspaper sales - both circulation and advertising - have fallen off in recent years as consumers turn their attention to more choices in media and entertainment, such as the Internet, television and satellite radio, to name just a few.