The Information (company)

The Information, legally Lessin Media Company, is a subscription-based digital media company.[2] The Information has tens of thousands of subscribers across 84 countries.[3][4] The Information publishes daily articles and does not have any ads on its site.[5][6] In 2016, the Columbia Journalism Review reported that 10 of the 11 most highly valued tech companies subscribe to The Information.[2]

Lessin Media Company
IndustryDigital media
FoundedDecember 2013
FounderJessica Lessin
HeadquartersSan Francisco
Number of employees
38[1]
Websitewww.theinformation.com

History

Jessica Lessin, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, quit her job in June 2013 to create a subscription-based news website marketed to technology-sector executives. The website, The Information, launched that December.[7][6][8] The publication focuses on in-depth, data-driven analysis and exclusive investigative stories. Subscribers get access to events and a members-only Slack channel.[2] Subscribers are given a personal page to encourage community involvement.[9] Lessin later formed an advisory board which included venture capitalist John Doerr, Politico co-founder Jim VandeHei, and ProPublica executive chairman Paul Steiger.[10] The company operates an Asia bureau headed by Shai Oster.[11]

Vanity Fair included The Information on its 2014 New Establishment list.[7]

Operations

Content is behind a paywall. A basic subscription allows access to the site and access to global networking events.[2][3] The company held an international networking event 2016 in Beijing, where annual subscribers met with leaders from Asian companies such as electronics company Xiaomi, venture capital firm Shunwei Capital, and investment management firm Hillhouse Capital Group.[2][12] In October 2016, it was announced that a student edition and Investor level would be added to the subscription levels. An Investor subscription includes private monthly conference calls and in-person briefings with the reporting team.[13][11]

The Information reports on exclusive insider stories, which has led to the site contributing to over $97 billion worth of brokered industry deals since its founding.[3] In April 2017, The Information announced the launch of Briefing, a new feature to the site consisting of a list of daily headlines with commentary on articles from other news sources.[14][15] In December 2019, the company launched ‘The Tech Top 10’, a basic, consumer-focused offering, at an annual price of $30.[16] In February 2020, the company announced a partnership with Bloomberg Media, enabling customers to purchase a year-long joint bundle for $499.[17]

References
  1. "About Us". The Information. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
  2. Merissa Marr. "Inside (The) Information". Columbia Journalism Review.
  3. Madeline Berg (December 5, 2016). "For Your Information: Subscriber-Only News Site The Information Capitalizes On Exclusives And Exclusivity". Forbes.
  4. Twitter https://twitter.com/Jessicalessin/status/1081355643716481024. Retrieved 6 January 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. Alyson Shontell (January 8, 2016). "Tech media startup 'The Information' sounds like it's run completely inefficiently, but it's actually a pretty good business". Business Insider.
  6. Mike Isaac (December 4, 2013). "Ex-WSJ Reporter's New Subscription Tech Site, The Information, Launches". All Things D.
  7. Joe Pompeo (October 24, 2016). "The Morning Media Profile: Jessica Lessin's rise from reporter to entrepreneur". Politico.
  8. Abigail Edge (March 19, 2014). "Why The Information chose to follow a paywall model". Journalism.co.uk.
  9. Max Willens (September 19, 2016). "The Information isn't ditching comments - its using them to attract subscribers". Digiday.
  10. Mathew Ingram (August 5, 2016). "The Founder of The Information on What Media Companies Are Doing Wrong". Fortune.
  11. Benjamin Mullin (October 26, 2016). "The Information's Jessica Lessin on building her business, putting subscribers first and the future of media". Poynter.
  12. Laura Hazard Owen (February 2, 2016). "The Information is offering members a perk: an exclusive trip to "meet the right people" in China". Nieman Lab.
  13. Laura Hazard Owen (October 26, 2016). "The Information's Jessica Lessin on how she's scaling an already-expensive subscription product". Nieman Lab.
  14. Laura Hazard Owen (April 25, 2017). "The Information's new Briefing is a continuous update of opinionated takes on other people's articles". Nieman Lab.
  15. Benjamin Millin (April 25, 2017). "With Briefing, The Information muscles in on news aggregators like Techmeme". Poynter.
  16. Lee, Edmund (7 February 2020). "Maybe Information Actually Doesn't Want to Be Free". New York Times.
  17. Barber, Kayleigh (19 February 2020). "The Information is testing a subscription bundle with Bloomberg Media". Digiday.
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