FT tops £500m revenue | Guardian launches affiliate ads business
And it's all change at the top of DMG Media where a promising chap called Harmsworth has caught the eye of the owner
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The Financial Times reported total revenue of more than £500m for the first time in 2023.
It is only the 39th biggest news website in the UK by number of visits, and does not feature in our global top 50 ranking. But its success is proof that quality is winning out over quantity in the race for news industry revenue.
Looking at the FT Group, growth was largely driven by events and B2B titles. But the backbone of the group is subscription revenue from 1.3 million paying digital readers.
Meanwhile, The Guardian, which boasts nearly ten times the global traffic of the FT according to Similarweb, made half the revenue the FT did in 2023. Its commitment to free online journalism means it must look beyond paywalls for new revenue and yesterday announced its first foray into affiliate marketing. Like many other publishers, The Guardian will now earn commission when readers click through to buy the products it recommends.
Meanwhile, it is all change at the top of DMG Media where Vere Harmsworth has been named chief commercial officer. He's the fifth generation of Harmsworth to work in the family business and has clearly inherited a passion for publishing.
DMG Media also has a new CEO with Rich Caccappolo moving to the role of vice chairman and Mail Online editor Danny Groom stepping into his shoes.
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New from Press Gazette
Financial Times exceeds £500m annual revenue for first time
Advertising at the FT saw its best year since 2012.
Guardian launches product recommendations earning commission on sales
The Filter includes features such as the "best electric cars to buy if you want to avoid Tesla".
Mail leadership shake-up as Mail Online boss becomes CEO
Ted Verity becomes editor-in-chief across all platforms including Mail Online.
News in brief
Press regulator IPSO has ruled that the Daily Mail was OK to call Douglas Barrowman a “roly-poly Scottish businessman” with “cocktail-sausage fingers” whose "dubious tax avoidance schemes ruined thousands and led to two suicides". (Press Gazette)
Newspaper and magazine giant Hearst has agreed a "content partnership" with OpenAI in the US which will include "appropriate citations and direct links" to titles like Cosmopolitan and the San Francisco Chronicle in ChatGPT. (Press Gazette)
The NUJ's national broadcasting organiser Laura Davison has been elected as its next general secretary. She said she wants to "grow and strengthen our union, maximising new opportunities created by legislative change and our legal, policy and industrial work".
The Athletic is teaming up with Yahoo Sports to create a free-to-read women's sports hub on the latter's site, using its scale to get in front of new people. (Axios)
The Guardian has removed a review that said a documentary about the 7 October terror attack "demonises Gazans as either killers or looters" meaning: "All our sympathies are with relatable Israelis." The link now states the article was removed "pending review".
A Ukrainian journalist, 27-year-old Victoria Roshchyna, has died in Russian detention after travelling to the country for a reporting trip last year and being held in mysterious circumstances. (The Guardian)
Previously on Press Gazette
Missing links: Upmarket UK newsbrands deny click-throughs to story sources
Former Observer editors voice ‘profound concern’ over proposed sale of title
Why Reach journalists are being asked to write up to eight articles per day
OpenAI exec rules out sharing revenue from SearchGPT with publishers, for now
Because we’re worth it: Why FT, Politico and Racing Post charge big for online news
AI challenge asks journalists to pitch for help to solve industry challenges (promoted)
Newsrooms 2.0: Why WordPress is taking over the industry (promoted)
Press Gazette live
Entries are now closed for the British Journalism Awards 2024.
But tickets are now available for the awards dinner, which is being held at the Hilton Bankside on 12 December hosted by Jeremy Vine. Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk for more information.