After 160 years, the New Straits Times and the New Sunday Times ceased publishing their broadsheet versions, bringing an era for the country's oldest newspaper group to an end.

The last issue of the broadsheet version of the New Straits Times (NST) was published on April 16.

New Straits Times

"It is a sad occasion for us but as a business, we have to come to terms with the harsh realities of changing times," said group Editor-in-Chief Kalimullah Hassan.

The decision was reached after long and careful consideration and approved by the NSTP board of directors at its meeting at the beginning of April, said Kalimullah.

The NST was the first newspaper in Asia to offer both the traditional broadsheet and compact versions beginning Sept 1 last year, following a trend fast becoming popular in the United Kingdom and Europe.

Two British newspapers, the iconic Times of London and the Independent, both began publishing a compact version alongside the broadsheet at the end of 2003 but last year, both newspapers decided to opt for one single compact version following an increase in sales.

Kalimullah said since the NST introduced its compact version, it reversed the more than decade-long decline in newspaper sales.

"Our sales have been increasing since then and for the first quarter of this year, we are showing numbers both in circulation and revenue not seen for a long time in the NST." Kalimullah said that a survey, commissioned by the group, by an international firm showed that more than two-thirds of Malaysians preferred the compact version of the New Straits Times.

"Loyal readers who grew up with the NST have written to us, telling us their preference for the broadsheet. It is a very difficult decision for us to make, especially when the request comes from people who have been so loyal and who love the newspaper."

The eight-page folio-sized Straits Times and Singapore Journal was launched on Tuesday, July 15, 1845, edited and hand-pressed in 200 copies by publisher and sole proprietor Robert Carr Woods in a godown in what is now Raffles Square in Singapore.

For 160 years, The Straits Times and its Malaysian successor, the New Straits Times, retained this original "broadsheet" format.

But daily newspapers throughout the world have been forced to adapt to changing lifestyles of their readers.

Mass transit and personal mobility, more than anything else, have made the broadsheet less convenient. The NSTP Group publishes four newspapers: the NST, theMalay Mail, and its Bahasa Malaysia publications, Berita Harian and the tabloid Harian Metro.

Sources: New Straits Times, New Sunday Times