Evening Standard to become free paper

The London Evening Standard has just announced plans to drop its 50p cover charge with effect from Monday 12^th October.  This is a further significant development on the London press scene following the recent closure of News International's thelondonpaper.

Circulation is expected to double from 250,000 to 600,000 copies a day as the paper moves to a free-distribution model.  (The title has recently been distributed free in certain parts of the capital, but this will make the shift total.)

The new initiative means that there will again be two free papers contesting the London market - the Lebedev-controlled Standard, and Associated's London Lite.

The move raises a number of interesting questions for recruiters and media-watchers alike.  Both titles currently feature in the RecruitLondon package, while Associated still retains a stake in the Standard.  Inevitably, rumours persist that the two titles could be merged to provide a single evening paper for the capital.

We'll be aiming to clarify the situation on Ri5 as more details become available next week.