We wrap up the week in digital magazine news with Joe Ripp on his company’s crazy-busy 2015, plus massive traffic at Wired and a free ebook from an unlikely source
Digital magazine news about multiplatform strategy, increasing website traffic, mergers & acquisitions, and white papers and freemiums is what we love to share with our Mequoda Members and visitors to our website.
Luckily, we have sources like FishbowlNY to draw from. Let’s take a look at some recent articles on industry goings-on, starting with one of our favorite, most fascinating topics of 2015 — the Time Inc. digital renaissance.
Joe Ripp on Time Inc. Digital Magazine News in 2015
Time Inc. was unstoppable in 2015, and we relayed stories of their progress with our digital magazine news what seemed like every week.
FishbowlNY reported on a company-wide memo sent out from CEO Joe Ripp that recaps a watershed year for a publisher fighting for relevance after spinning off from Time Warner.
“In 2015, we leveraged Time Inc.’s editorial excellence to accelerate our traffic growth. Through October, our global multi-platform audiences have grown to 155 million, up 19% year over year. Our social footprint rose 45% to 180 million, and our video audience jumped 86%. We continued our aggressive video programming and distribution push with new partners like Hulu, Yahoo and Zealot Networks, and we have made across-the-board gains in viewership, reach and engagement. With a new 3,000-square-foot soundstage at 225 Liberty Street, we are greatly expanding our video capabilities, including doubling our live production,” Ripp writes in the memo.
“We made significant investments to participate in the rapid growth of custom content and native solutions. We established the Foundry in Brooklyn, which launched The Drive, a new vertical aimed at auto enthusiasts. We plan to introduce additional verticals and capture our share of this growing market in the years ahead.”
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Nexstar Might Have Succeeded in Derailing Media General-Meredith Deal
Media General was this close to acquiring Meredith to form a mega broadcasting and publishing company, but now that imminent deal is very much in doubt, FishbowlNY reports.
“Nexstar is preparing to offer $2.2 billion for Media General, the Virginia-based TV company. According to Bloomberg Business, if a deal is made, Meredith will have at least four business days to either match or increase its offer,” Chris O’Shea writes.
“In early September, Media General announced it was buying Meredith for $2.4 billion. That deal hit a rough spot when [Media General] shareholders learned Nexstar wanted to acquire the company.”
Wired.com Eclipses a Billion Views
On the strength of a record-breaking 46 million uniques in February alone, Wired.com reached 1 billion this year, FishbowlNY reports.
“This astounding achievement is a fitting way to wrap up 2015,” Editor Scott Dadich said in a staff memo.
“When we revamped Wired.com in March, we were hopeful that our community would react positively to the changes that we made, and that our editors would have a better set of tools to tell amazing stories. And that’s just what happened! Wired.com has smashed every traffic record in the history of our brand through the focus, perseverance, and collaboration of our entire team.”
The New Republic Offers Free Ebook
The New Republic’s first ebook is a collection of its best articles of the year, and it’s available for free on its website, FishbowlNY reports.
“2015 was a very good year at the New Republic and this collection marks a milestone as we embark on new ways of bringing our journalism to our readers,” TNR Editor Gabriel Snyder told O’Shea, setting up one of the great punchlines of 2015.
“If this collection can help one delayed passenger stranded at an airport, it will all be worth it.”
Which digital magazine news are you following? Let us know in the comments!
To read more digital magazine news, visit FishbowlNY.
