Several of Postmedia’s newspapers will cancel their Monday print editions starting Oct. 17.

According to notices posted to the papers’ sites on Wednesday afternoon, “the decision reflects the rapidly changing news consumption habits of [their] readers, the needs of [their] advertisers and the escalating costs of printing and delivering a printed product.”

The publications that have posted notes to readers so far are the Vancouver Sun, The Province (Vancouver), The Calgary Herald, The Calgary Sun, The Edmonton Journal, The Edmonton Sun, The Ottawa Citizen, The Ottawa Sun and The Montreal Gazette.

The Monday edition will still be offered to readers in a digital format via ePaper, a digital replica of Postmedia’s printed products. All seven newspapers now publish their print editions from Tuesday to Saturday.

Subscription rates will stay the same and the new digital versions of the newspapers will publish the same stories, photos, columnists and features that the printed formats did. Websites for the publications will remain active.

In 2018, four other Postmedia-owned papers (The Sudbury Star, North Bay Nugget, Sault Star and Timmins Daily Press) ceased publishing their Monday print editions and digital e-editions. The Windsor Star ended its Monday print and ePaper editions in 2019. All five of those newspapers continue to publish news on their websites on Mondays.

Through the first three quarters of Postmedia’s fiscal year, revenues from both print advertising and circulation have continued on their multi-year path of decline. For the nine months ending May 31, print ad revenue declined by 3.7% and circulation revenue declined by 9.3% – dips that would have been even higher, had it not been for the company’s acquisition of Brunswick News. The cost of distributing its printed products has also continued to be a growing expense for Postmedia.