Apple buys digital magazine distributor Texture
Apple is dipping its hand into the journalism industry, announcing Monday it plans to acquire digital magazine distributor Texture.
Texture offers 200 magazines digitally in its app for a $10-a-month subscription. Within its large catalog, the app curates magazine articles based on the user’s interests.
Texture is available on both iOS and Android, and Apple says it won’t take down its Android platform, according to Recode.
Apple’s purchase of Texture signals the Cupertino tech giant’s expansion of its services segment, which includes Apple Music, iBooks and other services. The segment has been one of its fastest- growing across all of its revenue streams. It grew 18 percent in the company’s most recent quarter compared with the same period a year earlier, only behind the “other devices” segment — which includes Apple Watch, AirPods and Apple TV — at 36 percent.
Apple has purchased other media-focused companies, such as Beats for $3 billion and Book Lamp, which was then touted as a “Pandora for books,” for as much as $15 million in 2014. Texture is the first known acquisition Apple made in direct contact with publishers
and journalism outlets.
“We’re excited Texture will join Apple, along with an impressive catalog of magazines from many of the world’s leading publishers,” said Apple executive Eddy Cue in a press release. “We are committed to quality journalism from trusted sources and allowing magazines to keep producing
beautifully designed and engaging stories for users.”
Apple did not disclose how much it paid for Texture. Texture, which is owned by many big publishers such as Conde Nast and Hearst, has hundreds of thousands of subscribers, according to its CEO John Loughlin in 2016.
In2015, Loughlinandhis company, Next IssueMedia, raised $90million, $50million ofwhich came fromthe private equity firmKKR after its subscription magazine app was rebranded to Texture.
“I’m thrilled that Next IssueMedia, and its awardwinning Texture app, are being acquired by Apple,” said Loughlin. “The Texture team and its current owners, Condé Nast, Hearst, Meredith, Rogers Media andKKR, couldnot bemore pleased or excited with this development. We could not imagine a better home or future for the service.”