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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

Seattle Times to Cut 23 Newsroom Jobs in the New Year

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Last Friday The Seattle Times’ executive editor Don Shelton emailed newsroom employees with the news that 23 jobs would be cut. Voluntary buyouts have been offered, but if not enough people take the buyouts, layoffs may be needed. Affected positions could include reporters, desk editors, page designers and other. The Times said it has seen growth in digital subscriptions, but not enough “to offset structural advertising losses.”

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Equifax and TransUnion to Pay $23.1 Million for Deceiving Consumers

Auto-renew Subscription, Business Operations, Business Strategy, Consumer Services, Customer Service, News, Payment Processing, Paywall, Regulation and Compliance, Revenue and Sales, SaaS and Cloud Services /

Last week the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that Equifax and TransUnion, two of the Big Three credit-reporting agencies, have been deceiving consumers and will pay a combined total of $23.1 million as a result – $17.6 million in restitution to consumers and fines of $5.5 million to the CFPB. According to CFPB, the credit-reporting agencies deceived consumers about the usefulness of their credit scores and lured consumers into subscription programs through a “negative option” structure.

Equifax and TransUnion to Pay $23.1 Million for Deceiving Consumers Read More »

This Week’s Subscription News Headlines: Doom and Disruption

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The new year started out slow in terms of subscription and membership news, but it is back in full swing, less than a week in. In this week’s subscription news headlines, iHeartRadio and Napster team up, the feds say Equifax tricked customers into recurring revenue payments, and Apple pulls its New York Times app in China. In addition, we share articles on being successful in the subscription economy, OTT in 2016 and why PC Magazine thinks that LinkedIn is doomed under Microsoft.

This Week’s Subscription News Headlines: Doom and Disruption Read More »

Medium Makes More Major Changes to Its Online Publishing Model

Business Operations, Business Strategy, Consumer Services, Industry Announcements, News, Product Development, Revenue and Sales, Subscriber Acquisition /

On Wednesday, Medium founder and CEO Ev Williams announced major changes to Medium’s business model in a blog post titled “Renewing Medium’s Focus.” In the post, Williams outlines the background that led to the decision to shift course in 2017. Among the changes will be butting 50 jobs and closing its New York and Washington, D.C. offices. More importantly, a reimagined Medium also means the elimination of its native advertising model which has provided revenue for two dozen or so publishers now in beta, says Politico.

Medium Makes More Major Changes to Its Online Publishing Model Read More »

Entrepreneurs Launch Toiletry Membership Program, The Bathroom Sink

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Never run out of mouthwash, toothpaste or shampoo again. That’s the idea behind The Bathroom Sink, a membership service created by Joe Doucette, a commercial real estate agent in Phoenix, and his sister Jenna Rutschman. According to Tucson.com, Doucette started the online toiletry concierge service after recognizing a need in his own life to avoid running out of everyday toiletries like shampoo, deodorant and face wash.

Entrepreneurs Launch Toiletry Membership Program, The Bathroom Sink Read More »

Scribd Pulls Digital Comics from Digital Subscription Reading Service

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Is 2017 the year that subscription reading services will get it right? Not if Scribd is any indication. According to The Digital Reader, Scribd removed digital comics from its subscription service in early December, possibly earlier. There is no announcement of the change on the Scribd website or on its blog. The Digital Reader reports that fans spoke out on Twitter that they were not happy about the change. Scribd did, however, confirm the news in a statement that The Digital Reader republished:

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Amazon Prime Members Bought More than 1 Billion Items This Holiday Season

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Last week Amazon posted its results for the 2016 holiday season, the company’s best ever for devices including the Echo Dot, Fire TV stick, Fire tablet and Amazon Echo. In addition, customers bought more than nine times the number of Amazon Echo devices than last holiday season. Prime members also contributed to Amazon’s holiday success in 2016. Here are some key statistics shared by Amazon…

Amazon Prime Members Bought More than 1 Billion Items This Holiday Season Read More »

This Week’s Subscription News Headlines: Google, Growth and Glitches

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In this week’s subscription news headlines, Facebook and Twitter grapple with glitches, Hulu gets an exclusive deal with streaming rights for Disney flicks, and LinkedIn’s Lynda.com is hit with a data breach, affecting 55,000 accounts. Also this week we share what analysts are predicting for the digital ad industry next year, the latest acquisition news and how gamers are balking at Nintendo’s $10 paywall.

This Week’s Subscription News Headlines: Google, Growth and Glitches Read More »

Hachette Livre Acquires Major Stake in Subscription App ‘Peak’

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Last week Peak, a best-selling, subscription-based cognitive learning app, announced that publisher Hachette Livre has acquired a major stake in the company, allowing Peak to continue to grow and develop the app named best of 2014 by the App Store and best of 2015 by Google Play. Peak will work independently, and its original team of founders will run the operation out of London. The news comes following a successful 2016 for Peak in which they released 10 new games, launched in seven new countries, and introduced Coach, a personal trainer for the brain, among other accomplishments.

Hachette Livre Acquires Major Stake in Subscription App ‘Peak’ Read More »

Subscription Service ArtMail Launches, Offering Curated Art Prints

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Earlier this month Ekaterina Kouznetsova, a recent graduate of the University of Texas at Dallas, launched ArtMail, a subscription art service that connects international artists with ArtMail subscribers, reports Culture Map Dallas. ArtMail curates art for subscribers by finding emerging international artists specializing in various styles (e.g., abstract, impressionist, etc.) and selecting art that meets each subscriber’s style preferences. ArtMail’s vision: making it effortless to buy incredible art and discover international artists.

Subscription Service ArtMail Launches, Offering Curated Art Prints Read More »