The New York Times Company | The New York Times
Advertising and circulation revenue rose at The New York Times Company in the first quarter of 2014. Times Co. CEO Mark Thompson said in an earnings release that while the company is “pleased with this result,” it is “certainly not claiming victory in advertising yet.” Both digital and print advertising revenue rose, for a combined total that was 3.4 percent higher than the same period in 2013.
The Times’ native advertising product, Paid Posts, “launched very successfully” during this quarter, Thompson said.
The company says it now has about 799,000 digital-only subscribers, an increase of 39,000 over the first quarter of 2013. Circulation revenues were up 2.1 percent. It expects circulation revenue “to increase in the low-single digits in the second quarter of 2014” over the same period in 2013.
The company’s operating costs went up 3.8 percent, “mainly due to higher compensation and benefits expenses associated with the strategic growth initiatives as well as higher retirement costs,” the earnings report says.
Earlier this month the Times introduced two new tiers of subscriptions: A no-frills product, where readers get access to some stories via an app called NYT Now, and a high end one that promises “the highest level of connection with The New York Times.” It launched a news startup, The Upshot, this week.
Regarding the new products, Thompson said he is “pleased with the reception thus far and by the continued strength of our core digital subscription packages, which grew by 18% year-over-year in Q1.”
