News

The 148-year-old Salt Lake Tribune wants to become the first U.S. legacy newspaper to try nonprofit status on for size. Attorneys representing the newspaper are seeking IRS approval for an endowed nonprofit foundation supporting independent journalism in Utah, while also pursuing 501(c)(3) status. If approved, ownership would be transferred from owner Paul Huntsman to a public board.

Making the subscription news headlines this week are merger talks, advertising platforms, job cuts and the weirdness of pandemic dating.

In its first quarter 2019 financials released on May 2, CBS (NYSE: CBS, CBS.A) reported its best quarter ever in terms of revenue and Q1 records in adjusted operating income and adjusted diluted earnings per share. Total revenue for Q1 was $4.17 billion, an 11% increase year-over-year. Adjusted operating income was $793 million, a 2% increase year-over-year. Though an increase, this was offset by higher costs for premium content, including the number of owned series and higher investments into the growth and expansion of the companys direct-to-consumer streaming service.

Employees of The Tacoma News Tribune are the latest casualties in an industry plagued with falling revenues, mergers and acquisitions, and employee layoffs. According to The Seattle Times, the 135-year-old News Tribune will cut 67 print and ad-insertion jobs next year, including 26 full-time staff and 41 part-time staff when the company shuts down its 45-year-old printing press next year. Impacted employees will receive severance pay, subsidized health care benefits and support in finding new employment.

Happy May! As the days get longer, weve got plenty of great subscription articles to share including how fitness subscriptions are making exercise and personal training at home more convenient, Meredith Corp. has Sports Illustrated on the bidding block and Authentic Brands appears to be the frontrunner, Facebook announces a major redesign, Instagram is testing a feature that hides likes and view counts, and LinkedIn shares top subscription jobs.

Condé Nast is starting out the year with staff cuts to the Glamour magazine team, part of the parent company's overall reorganization plan. According to WWD, Glamour cut staff last week, including an assistant editor and executive beauty editor. This news comes just two months after Glamour announced that the 80-year-old fashion and beauty magazine would cease publication at the beginning of this year. The January 2019 issue was the magazine's last regular print issue. The magazine may, however, print special editions occasionally.

Apple TV+ to offer AR content, Amazon and Netflix have the most new releases and Porsche to expand subscriptions in North America.

At the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show earlier this month, Hyundai Motor America announced it would make its Ioniq Unlimited electric car available via subscription, giving drivers a new kind of ownership experience. With the Ioniq Electric, drivers can pay one monthly subscription price that includes unlimited mileage, electric charging costs, maintenance, repairs, wear-and-tear items, and purchase fees like registration.

This first article of our series Getting Your Product Out the Door: Product Development Basics offers a look at the history of subscription product development, defines the role of product owner and its importance to the organization and details the elements of new product development.

Last week eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) and Shopify (NYSE: SHOP, TSX: SHOP) announced a new partnership, creating a new sales channel to expand merchant reach. In the fall of 2017, Shopify merchants will be able to list and sell their products on eBay directly from their Shopify accounts, giving them access to more than 169 million active eBay buyers. eBay also benefits with its shoppers getting additional products from Shopify merchants. The platform will first be available to merchants selling in the United States with the U.S. dollar as their currency.