The Times’ Lucky Number 13: On Wednesday, The New York Times reported that it now has 13.1 million subscribers, after adding 310,000 digital-only subscribers in the first quarter. Given this pace—adding an average of roughly 330,000 subscribers per quarter—the news outlet is on pace to meet its self-appointed goal of surpassing 15 million subscribers by the end of 2027. The earnings report is effectively a victory lap, stuffed with eye-popping figures. Perhaps the most astounding one is its digital ad growth, which climbed 31.6%, to $93.3 million, an uptick the company attributed to strong demand and growth in advertising supply. The Times continues to lead the digital media industry, with the distance between it and its competitors growing farther each quarter.
Bloomberg Podcasts Increase Volume: Bloomberg Media hired Cheryl Brumley, formerly the global head of audio at The Financial Times, as its new head of podcasts, the company announced on Wednesday. The appointment is the latest indication of the ambitions that Bloomberg Media has for its podcast and video products, a division in which it has a natural advantage owing to its decades of network video programming and global footprint. The news outlet already has several podcast hits on its hands, most notably Odd Lots, but it will be up to Brumley to expand that slate and help usher the Bloomberg portfolio firmly into the vodcast era.
The Affiliate Apocalypse (SCOOP): In the first quarter, Amazon began halving the affiliate rates that it offered to many of its publishers, according to three people familiar with the cuts. In some instances the company cut rates from 10% to 4%. Amazon declined to share its rationale for the cuts, but sources blame the company’s growing AI tab. For publishers with large affiliate businesses, the abrupt change from the largest retail platform in the world has eaten further into their already thinning margins, making more difficult a business that has already been hammered by declining traffic and increasing competition from new channels, like creators. Coming out of the pandemic, digital commerce was booming to such a degree that nearly every publisher launched an affiliate business—even Vice, in its typical fashion, sought to corner the market on sex toy sales. But those days are long gone, and now only industry leaders like Wirecutter and The Strategist have the resources to remain in the space profitably. In response, affected publishers are working more closely with Amazon competitors, like Walmart and Target, sources tell ADWEEK.
Pulled Quotes
“I’m trying to set the all-time record for achievement by one person in one lifetime.”
Entertainment mogul Ted Turner, who died Wednesday, describing his ambitions to a biographer
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“‘Never mind we found money exclamation point,’ Sloane said into her watch.”
A teenager, from a delightful profile of modern youth
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“All of sports betting, all of playing poker, all of options trading, is making sure you’re betting against someone you’re smarter than.”
Jeff Yass, founder of the quantitative trading firm Susquehanna, on prediction markets
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