The Press Market in Costa Rica

Costa Rica, a Central American country with a population of 4.075.000 on a surface of 51.100 sq km, is divided in seven provinces. The economic centre lies around the capital of San José. More than half of the country’s population lives in the surrounding urban areas of the province. In the North Costa Rica borders with Nicaragua, in the South with Panama. At present, the inflation rate is at around 13.8% and the unemployment at 6.6%. The official language of Costa Rica is Spanish, but many Caribbean blacks also speak a lively dialect of English, known as Creole, and other indigenous languages are spoken in isolated areas (primarily Bribrí, which is estimated to be understood by about 10.000 people). Domestic newspapers are distributed through single copy sales (60%) or home delivery (40%). The value of local press is estimated around 28 million dollars. The market for imported press has a value of around 5.5 million dollars, evenly split between daily newspapers and less frequent publications. Of course a major share is made up of imported Spanish-language press, which is bought frequently also by residents. The market for English and other languages is much more restrained, mostly for the different communities of expatriats living in Costa Rica.

With the kind contribution from Roberto Sisti, Spanish Periodical & Book Sales