The New York Times Quits Apple News
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While advertisers are pulling away from Facebook, Apple is having its own issues.
The New York Times has ended its partnership with Apple News, effective June 29, after the service failed to boost readership numbers, chief operating officer Meredith Levien said Monday. She also pointed out that Apple does not give partners enough information about user data.
The Times, which has been a member for several years, is the largest organization to quit the app, which was launched in 2015 and allows users to peruse stories from a plethora of publishers.
“Apple News does not align with our strategy to fund quality journalism by building direct relationships with paying readers,” a Times spokesman said. “We believe quality publishers should be fairly compensated for the expensive proposition of creating and providing platforms valuable independent journalism.”
Instead, the Times plans to put its energy into attracting readers directly to its web site and app. It added 587,000 net new digital subscriptions in the three months ended March 29, compared with the previous quarter. This was the biggest quarterly jump on record.
It’s not completely severing ties with the tech giant, though, stating that it will “continue to have strong partnerships with Apple through a variety of other products.” This no doubt includes podcasts.
A spokesperson for Apple said that the Times has only offered Apple News a few stories a day.
“We are committed to providing the more than 125 million people who use Apple News with the most trusted information and will continue to do so through our collaboration with thousands of publishers, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Houston Chronicle, the Miami Herald, and the San Francisco Chronicle, and we will continue to add great new outlets for readers,” it added.
Apple News recently unveiled a NewsPlus subscription costing $9.99 a month. The Times did not join the latter.
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