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Dana E. Neuts

Dana Neuts is Subscription Insider's Editorial Director, covering our daily subscription news as well as member features, case studies, premium content, and reports. Dana is also a writer, editor, marketer and communications professional. Her work has appeared in AARP Bulletin, The Seattle Times, Seattle Business, 425 Business, 425 Magazine, South Sound Magazine, Northwest Travel and more. Her specialties include business writing, community news, senior issues, travel and, of course, subscriptions!

Dana E. Neuts

Weekly Subscription News: Fitbit, the Future and Free

Auto-renew Subscription, Business Services, Consumer Services, Entertainment and Streaming, Mergers and Acquisitions, News, Revenue and Sales, SaaS and Cloud Services, Subscription Apps /

Happy first of November! It is hard to believe the year is almost over. Where did it go? As the year draws to a close, subscription companies are making deals, tough decisions and launching new products. This week, an exclusive Reuters report says Alphabet is trying to buy Fitbit, Sony may be selling off PlayStation Vue, and The Financial Times is launching subscriber-only podcasts. Also this week, Amazon rolls out a new, ad-supported News video app, AT&T is offering free HBO Max, and Citrix is facing challenges as it shifts to a subscription-based licensing model.

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Meredith Corp Buys Stop, Breath & Think Mobile Mindfulness App

Consumer Services, Freemium, Mergers and Acquisitions, News, Revenue and Sales, Subscription Apps /

Meredith Corp announced Tuesday that it made a strategic purchase with its recent acquisition of Stop, Breathe & Think (SBT), a mobile mindfulness app. The four-year-old app has more than 17 million emotional check-ins. The app differentiates itself from its competitors with regular emotional check-ins and mindfulness acts, multi-day programs, apps for children and distribution on multi-platforms. Like other popular mindfulness apps, SBT uses a freemium model with a free version and paid premium plans.

Meredith Corp Buys Stop, Breath & Think Mobile Mindfulness App Read More »

illustration of the number five, representing the five subscription business topics for this column, Five-on-Friday

Five on Friday: Digital News, Delivery Fees and Super Heroes

Business Operations, Business Services, Business Strategy, Consumer Services, Entertainment and Streaming, News, Product Development, Revenue and Sales, Subscriber Only, Subscription Apps /

      CNN to Create Digital News Subscription Service CNN is stepping into the subscription game by adding another app to their portfolio. The AT&T-backed company currently has CNNgo, which allows you to log in through your cable provider to access the 24-hour cable news network on the go. Their stories are also available on voice-controlled devices, Samsung and Apple devices. Their newest venture? Adding a subscription news platform to allow users access to CNN stories at their…

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Facebook Agrees to 500,000 Fine for Cambridge Analytica Data Breach

Business Operations, Business Services, Consumer Services, Data and IoT, News, Regulation and Compliance, SaaS and Cloud Services, Subscription Apps /

Facebook is finally facing the music for the Cambridge Analytica data breach. The social media platform has agreed to pay a 500,000 fine, approximately $643,000, to the United Kingdoms Information Commissioners Office (ICO), reports NPR. The ICO alleges that Facebook failed to protect data gathered by Cambridge Analytica from approximately 87 million Facebook users. After litigating the matter for more than a year after the monetary penalty notice was originally levied, Facebook agreed to pay the fine to end the appeals and negotiations between Facebook and the U.K.

Facebook Agrees to 500,000 Fine for Cambridge Analytica Data Breach Read More »

Spotify Grows Monthly Active Users by 30 Percent in Q3 2019

Business Operations, Consumer Services, Entertainment and Streaming, FInance, Freemium, News, Revenue and Sales, Subscription Apps /

In its third quarter financials, streaming audio service Spotify reports growth in monthly active users (MAUs), subscribers, gross margin and operating profit. For the eighth quarter in a row, the company had positive free cash flow, for the period ended September 30, 2019. In addition, Spotify said that podcasts are increasing overall engagement and it has significantly increased conversion of free users to paid users.

Spotify Grows Monthly Active Users by 30 Percent in Q3 2019 Read More »

Fair Auto Subscription Startup Cuts 40 Percent of Staff Including CFO

Business Operations, Business Strategy, Consumer Services, News, Product Development, Revenue and Sales, SaaS and Cloud Services /

Fair, a two-year-old auto subscription startup, announced it is cutting 40% of its staff, including chief financial officer Tyler Painter, the brother of CEO and co-founder Scott Painter. Painter will be replaced by Kirk Shryoc, managing partner and co-founder of Hard Right Solutions LLC, a software and consultancy firm, reports Auto Finance News. TechCrunch estimates that Fair will lose about 215 of its 539 employees, as reported on LinkedIn. Scott Painter notified employees on October 24 via email.

Fair Auto Subscription Startup Cuts 40 Percent of Staff Including CFO Read More »

Amazon Reports Mixed Results for the Third Quarter

Auto-renew Subscription, Business Services, Consumer Services, Entertainment and Streaming, FInance, Memberships, News, Revenue and Sales, SaaS and Cloud Services /

Retail giant Amazon reported mixed results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2019. Amazon had net sales of $70.0 billion for Q3, a 24% increase over $56.6 billion in Q3 2018. Amazon Web Services (AWS) represented $9.0 billion of total sales, compared to $6.8 billion in Q3 2018. Operating income dropped to $3.2 billion, compared to $3.7 billion Q3 2018. Net income dropped to $2.1 billion, or $4.23 per diluted share, compared to $2.9 billion, or $5.75 per diluted share in Q3 2018.

Amazon Reports Mixed Results for the Third Quarter Read More »

Amazon Creates a Built-for-Kids Kindle Reading Experience

Auto-renew Subscription, Business Media and Publishing, Consumer Services, Entertainment and Streaming, News, Product Development, Revenue and Sales, Subscriber Acquisition, Subscription Apps /

Amazon is trying to appeal to kids and families with the release of new built-for-kids Kindle Kids Edition and Fire HD 10 Kids Edition tablets. Along with these new products, Amazon is expanding its Amazon FreeTime app and FreeTime Unlimited subscriptions. The new Kindle Kids edition is a tablet designed just for kids, including a long-lasting battery, a two-year guarantee, access to over 1,000 eBooks with FreeTime Unlimited and a kid-friendly case for $109.99.

Amazon Creates a Built-for-Kids Kindle Reading Experience Read More »

illustration of the number five, representing the five subscription business topics for this column, Five-on-Friday

Five on Friday: Transformations, Acquisitions and Retention

Auto-renew Subscription, Business Operations, Business Services, Business Strategy, Consumer Services, Entertainment and Streaming, Industry Announcements, Mergers and Acquisitions, News, Payment Processing, Product Development, Revenue and Sales, Subscriber Only, Subscriber Retention /

  Taking a break from the MLS conference semi-finals, the World Series or the kick-off of the NBA season? We’ve got some interesting subscription features for you. McClatchy lays off 30 employees as it continues its digital transformation, Meredith Corp sells the MONEY brand to Ad Practitioners LLC, and American Press Institute shares examples of how publishers have successfully retained subscribers through engagement. Also this week, Netflix is raising $2 billion in debt to pay for content, and the Financial Times adds consultancy to its list of services to help other publishers learn from their paywall success.      Last week, in an email to staff, McClatchy president and CEO Craig Forman outlined big changes coming to the organization as it continues its digital transformation, reports Poynter. The changes include leadership shifts and changes to functional areas (News, Finance, Customer and Product, and Operations). They also include layoffs of about 30 employees, or 1% of staff. None of the layoffs will come from reporting positions. …

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Microsoft Reports 14 Percent Revenue Growth in Q1 FY20

News /

Microsofts fiscal year 2020 is off to a good start, reporting revenue of $33.1 billion, a 14% increase year-over-year, for the quarter ended September 30, 2019. The strong revenue was driven by cloud revenue, including Productivity and Business Processes at $11.1 billion and Intelligent Cloud at $10.8 billion, increases of 13% and 27% respectively. Operating income for the first quarter of fiscal year 2020 was $12.7 billion. Microsoft reported net income of $10.7 billion and diluted earnings per share of $1.38, a 21% increase year-over-year, beating Wall Street expectations.

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