What It's Like Competing With VC-Fueled Media Startups

Elsewhere in this, the Digital Issue of Advertising Age, my colleague Michael Sebastian writes about digital publishing companies -- specifically, a half dozen upstarts in various stages of youth, including BuzzFeed (born 2006) and Vox (2011).It's an eye-opening report that looks beyond the hype surrounding these companies. Some of them are profitable (or at least claim to be), some aren't, but all of them have raised serious cash from starry-eyed investors (e.g., $96.3 million for BuzzFeed, $110 million for Vox). The business press tends to regard such hefty sums as implicit evidence of success and/or promise -- why would venture capitalists risk so much scratch if there was no there there? -- but Michael reminds us that all of these companies rely, somewhat harrowingly, on advertising for revenue.Which means these new-media challengers have, at their core, basically the same business model as the publishing incumbents. They're selling eyeballs to brands (though sometimes they put a different spin on it; e.g., they're actually selling "engagement"). Everyone is competing for the same digital dollars, and thus the same digital-advertising issues that dog legacy media companies (declining CPMs, the rise of programmatic, the challenge of monetizing mobile, etc.) apply to the new kids on the block, too. Continue reading at AdAge.com Continue reading at 'Advertising Age'

[ Advertising Age | 2015-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #business model #digital dollars #monetizing mobile

Other Publishing stories related to: 'What It's Like Competing With VC-Fueled Media Startups'


Iranian media reportedly renew fatwa on Rushdie

Forty state-run Iranian media outlets have renewed the fatwa on Salman Rushdie, the Independent has reported, quoting Iranian news service the Fars News Agency. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #salman rushdie


Fairfax Media posts $27.4m profit despite lower print advertising revenue

Property website Domain increases digital revenue by 37% and continues to prop up Fairfax’s overall profit as editorial restructure is announcedFairfax Media, publishers of the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald, have returned a net profit of $27.4m for the first half of the financial year... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-02-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #net profit #editorial restructure #financial year #print advertising


Contently Buys Analytics Startup That Tells B2B Marketers How Well Their Downloads Work

Contently has purchased Docalytics for an undisclosed sum to ramp up its data offerings for publishing-minded, business-to-business clients. In the increasingly competitive content marketing space, Contently hopes to offer customers better actionable results.  "Data is key to B2B marketers, and... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2016-02-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #white papers


Startup of the week: Book In A Box

The concept behind Book In A Box - that aspiring authors can outsource the entire writing and publishing process - might be controversial, but then founder Max Tucker has made a bestselling publishing career out of profitable controversy. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Reedsy on a Roll: The UK Startup Expands To Serve Publishers

'Reedsy for Publishers' is on the way, as the 2-year-old UK startup rolls out its Reedsy Book Editor with collaborative functionality to come. The post Reedsy on a Roll: The UK Startup Expands To Serve Publishers appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post reedsy #serve publishers


Social media 'phenomenon' Ben Phillips to Blink

Blink Publishing has signed an as-yet-untitled book by social media "phenomenon”, internet prankster Ben Phillips. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #blink publishing #as-yet-untitled book


Active Interest Media’s Jonathan Dorn on New Marketing-Services Unit

AIM's SVP of digital and creative services talks to Folio: about launching a marketing services unit as an enthusiast publisher in today's industry. The post Active Interest Media’s Jonathan Dorn on New Marketing-Services Unit appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2016-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #enthusiast publisher


Startup of the week: Publishizer

Born in India and bred in Silicon Valley, the matchmaking service for authors and publishers has already earned 130 authors $464,000 in pre-orders, produced six Amazon #1 bestsellers and secured $100,000 funding in its quest to become "the world's first true crowd-publishing platform". The pitch Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #silicon valley


At AMMC 2016, A New Confidence in the Air For Large Magazine Media Brands

There was a kind of cockiness in the air at the AMMC this week, based on a growing realization that magazine brands are really, really good at creating world-class content. The post At AMMC 2016, A New Confidence in the Air For Large Magazine Media Brands appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2016-02-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #magazine brands


Active Interest Media Launches In-House Content Marketing Unit

The debut of Catapult Creative Labs marks the enthusiast publisher's latest expansion into uncharted territory. The post Active Interest Media Launches In-House Content Marketing Unit appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2016-02-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #enthusiast publisher #uncharted territory


Day in the life: What a publisher social media manager does

Being a social media manager involves more than tweeting, apparently. Hayley Saltzman works at Bustle in the role and revealed that her job is more strategic and planning tweets, Facebook posts and Instagram pictures. She tells Digiday that she figures out how to bring traffic into the site and... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post day #facebook posts


Waleed Aly: don't take social media bait of misogynist provocations

Host of the Project says outrage at ‘neo-masculinist’ Daryush Valizadeh should be channelled into something positive, rather than fuelling his public profileWaleed Aly has called for a social media blackout on Daryush Valizadeh, the leader of “neo-masculinist” group Return of the Kings who... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #tuesday night #sell books


Marketers, It's Time to Rebalance Your Media Scale

We're going to hear a lot about comparable metrics this year -- finally. As emerging media platforms continue to dominate the headlines -- creating the perception that ad tech is where all the audience is -- smart advertisers will insist on a lens through which the avalanche of charts, claims,... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2016-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ad tech #sharp rise #digital devices


Baroness Rebuck and Jimmy Wales join Guardian Media Group board

Chair of book publisher Penguin Random House UK and Wikipedia founder take up their roles with immediate effectGuardian Media Group has appointed Baroness Rebuck, the chair of book publisher Penguin Random House UK, and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales to its board.They join other high profile... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #baroness rebuck


Meredith Close to Walking Away From $2.4B Acquisition by Media General

Meredith Corp. is close to walking away from its attempt to merge with Media General, allowing Nexstar Broadcasting Group to acquire the TV station owner after months of negotiation, according to people familiar with the matter.Meredith, the owner of broadcast stations and magazines like Better... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2016-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #media general #fit pregnancy #tv stations #digital businesses #quarterly results


This Startup Wants To End AdBlock's "Raping and Pillaging" Of Online Publishers

Websites are freaking out over billions in lost revenue and starting to fight back, but there are still legit reasons to block ads.This January marked the 10th anniversary of AdBlock Plus, a browser plug-in that banishes ads from web pages. It isn't the only ad blocker; but AdBlock Plus... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2016-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #lost revenue #fight back #block ads #10th anniversary #web pages #ad blocker


Two newspaper closures as Canada's media crisis deepens

Titles give up newsprint publication due to falling advertising and sales revenueAnother day, another bleak day for newsprint in Canada. Two more Canadian dailies, the Guelph Mercury in Ontario and the Nanaimo Daily News on Vancouver Island, have announced that they will publish their final... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-01-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #torstar corporation #online version


Portsmouth newspaper's price rise a symptom of media malady

Newsprint buyers will vanish ever faster, but publishers have done too little with their digital products to make them attractive to readers or advertisersAlongside a range of cutbacks, one of the other major tactics employed by regional newspaper publishers is, of course, cover price rises.This... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-01-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital products #short term


Linda Thomas Brooks to Lead MPA, The Association of Magazine Media

Linda Thomas Brooks has been tapped to serve as the next president and CEO at MPA, The Association of Magazine Media, the leading magazine trade organization. She will succeed Mary Berner, who left in September to serve as chief executive of Cumulus Media.Ms. Brooks most recently was co-founder... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2016-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #magazine media #gm mediaworks #martin agency


Digital media needs to make user experience a priority — or else

User experience is about empathy for the end user, Barbarian Group's Colin Nagy said on the Digiday Podcast. Many publishers miss that as they strive to churn pageviews and banner ad impressions. The result: navigating digital media is like walking on a sticky movie theater floor. The post... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digiday podcast #user experience #end user