Newspaper price war eases with 'Times' rise

The price war in the broadsheet newspaper market is to ease further from next week as The Times becomes the latest title to raise its cover price.

In the past Rupert Murdoch's News International, owner of The Times, has been one of the most enthusiastic competitors on price, leading to several Office of Fair Trading investigations on predatory pricing tactics, including a current inquiry.

However, from Monday, the price of The Times will increase from 40p to 45p – putting it back up to its level in 1993 before Mr Murdoch triggered the prolonged price war with the paper's broadsheet rivals.

Earlier this month The Sunday Times, raised its cover price by 20p to £1.40. This was followed by The Daily Telegraph and The Independent both increasing the cover price from 50p to 55p.

Price-cutting strategies have caused the loss of millions of pounds in circulation revenues, while analysts have questioned whether it results in permanent changes in reading habits.

News International declined to comment on The Times price move but industry figures cautioned against seeing this as the end of the price war at the top end of the market.

Steve Goodman, head of press at MediaCom, which buys advertising space on behalf of companies, said newspapers were under-priced. "Any readers you lose as a result of a 5p increase are not the type that are inspiring to our clients," he said.