BAxios just posted on X that investors are warming to media startups again, drawn to premium subscriptions and live events.
BAgain? I've seen this movie. It ends with "pivot to video."
BThat's the part that always gets me. The new pitch isn't eyeballs, it's money from actual paying customers.
BAnd events, which means ticket sales and sponsorships.
BRight. The argument is a media company can finally stop depending completely on the ad market.
BI'll believe that when a startup survives a downturn without cutting half its staff.
BLook at the ones doing it: niche news, paid newsletters, events. They have real revenue.
BReal revenue, tiny scale. That's not a business, that's a lifestyle.
BOh, come on. A ten-person shop with ten million in subscriptions is a real business.
BUntil the founder burns out and sells to a conglomerate.
BThat's the exit. Investors are fine with that.
BSo we're celebrating building companies to flip them?
BNo, we're acknowledging that a premium model can work. You don't need billions of users.
BYou need thousands willing to pay hundreds a year. That's a country club, not a media company.
BAnd what's wrong with a country club? Those members get better information.
BThey get information tailored to what they already believe.
BNow that's unfair. Premium isn't partisan.
BIt's not about partisanship. It's about insularity. You pay for what you want to hear.
BOr you pay for reliability, depth, no ads, no clickbait. That's a product.
BA product for the few. Meanwhile the public square gets dumber.
BThe public square has always been free and dumb. The subscription model isn't causing that.
BMaybe not causing it, but it's abandoning the mission.
BThe mission is to stay in business. Can't inform anyone if you're bankrupt.
BFine, but the Axios piece says "warming" not "booming." So maybe even the money isn't convinced.
BIt's a shift in sentiment. That's worth watching.
BI'll watch, but my wallet stays closed.
BNoted.
BSpeaking of investors, Reuters has a story about a fake bidder for Touchstone Exploration getting a suspended sentence.
BA fake bidder? Like someone pretended to offer to buy the company?
BThat's the report. Though details are thin, and we haven't confirmed independently.
BIf true, that's a weird way to move a stock.
BThe "fake bidder" game is old: announce a takeover, pump the price, disappear.
BAnd a suspended sentence means no jail time. That's almost incentive.
BIt's a slap on the wrist for something that hurts real investors.
BNo argument there.