Picking up the tab.

On August 21, the Orange County Register plans to launch a daily tabloid called the OC Post. Publisher Christian Anderson describes target subscribers as "very, very busy--a lot of them have young families--but they are interested in the community and want information about their community."

Unfortunately, that could describe the entire next generation of newspaper readers--many of whom don't read dally newspapers anymore.

But publication designer Mario Garcia believes the tabloid format could slow or even reverse that trend. He cites a 2005 study from the International Newspaper Marketing Association that looked at 16 newspapers with changed formats; on average, they increased circulation 4.6 percent.

And newspapers are going small, according to Garcia, who redesigned the Wall Street Journal in 2002. "Tabloids are protagonists in a play about newspaper survival," he wrote in a 2005 white paper. "One by one, the largest and best-known newspaper titles around the world will make the transition to smaller formats."

Resistance to tab size comes mostly from journalists who associate it with sensationalistic coverage of celebrities, sports and police dramas. But Garcia said that research shows readers, especially young ones, prefer the format. In fact, a number of respected and iconic publications are in tabloid format, including the Times of London, the investment weekly Barron's, the showbiz trade journal Variety and the Los Angeles Business Journal.

The OC Post is a tentative move toward reformatting. The publisher expects home deliveries to start at 140,000, or about half of the Register's circulation. Promotional subscriptions will sell for $19.99 a year, compared to a full year of the Register for $97. Alternately, readers can pick up the Post on the newsstand for 25 cents, half of the cost of a daily Register. (Because tabloids use less newsprint, publishers can afford to sell them for less.)

So will Southern California's other major newspaper go tab? A Los Angeles Times spokesman said last week that there are no plans to change formats, although this year the Times has published several tabloid special sections, including one on the Oscars and another on the Emmy Awards. Some readers might be reminded of sensational celeb coverage, but it's hard to argue against the economics of going small.