Chris Dobson, a senior executive at Microsoft's online business, commutes to his London office from Hertfordshire, where his local paper, the Welwyn & Hatfield Times, has been noticeably thinner of late.
'The property section used to be page after page. Now it's four sides. As a consumer, it really struck me.'
Like other titles, the paper has been deprived of valuable advertising as the downturn in the property market means fewer homes are being sold.
Income generated from other ads, including jobs and cars, is falling too.
