A device for collecting printed products includes a rotating collecting cylinder to and a controllable holding device that holds and releases the printed products collected in a peripheral area of the collecting cylinder. A diverter includes an exposed end and a support roller. The diverter has an operational position to lift the products off the collecting cylinder and transfer them onto a conveying device, and a non-operational position for collecting the products on the collecting cylinder. A control unit moves the diverter from the non-operational position during an interval between two successive printed products and with the timing of the supplied printed products, to the operational position in which the diverter's exposed end is inserted in the surface area of the collecting cylinder. A circulating control member is drive-connected to the collecting cylinder and includes at least one control cam associated with the support roller in the non-operational and operational positions of the diverter.