Former Politico founder Jim VandeHei says "media is broken" and he's hoping to fix it with his new startup called Axios, a group of newsletters launching on Jan. 18, according to a report in the
Wall Street Journal. VandeHei says banner ads and long-form native ads don't work. "Axios will only offer advertisers a type of short-form branded content. It will fit all on one screen and
will lie more naturally within its editorial concept of providing readers bite-size bits of hard news and information," according to the report. VandeHei said that readers want shorter, more
"digestible news" that's "more shareable". So how will Axios, as a publisher, make money? For one thing, it won't rely solely on advertising, smart move. Axios' founders plan to "launch a high-end
subscription offering targeted at CEOs, top business leaders and political insiders in about six months. Costs will vary as packages will be tailor-made, but could run as high as $10,000 a year," the
Journal reported. Axios will also team up with other publishers to sponsor events which rake in dollars. Among partners mentioned in the report: Business Insider, NBC News and the
Information.
Read the whole story at Wall Street Journal »