De Correspondent
De Correspondent is a Dutch ad-free, member-funded journalism platform founded in 2013 serving 63,000+ paying subscribers with in-depth reporting on societal themes via website, mobile app, podcasts, and an affiliated book publishing arm.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What De Correspondent does
De Correspondent is a Dutch ad-free, member-funded online journalism platform founded in 2013 in Amsterdam, producing background, analysis, and investigative reporting across climate, healthcare, migration, politics, economy, and technology. The platform is accessible via its website and a newly launched mobile app (iOS/Android, February 2025), with a Progressive Web App planned for direct installation. The technology stack runs on Amazon Web Services infrastructure with a custom publishing system called Respondens, developed by design studio Momkai, which also handles the brand identity and product design.
The business operates a horizontal subscription model serving individual readers, corporate clients, and book readers through multiple membership tiers. Primary revenue comes from individual memberships at €10.50/month, €105/year, or €200 for two years, with approximately 63,000 paying members generating an estimated €8-9 million in subscription revenue annually. Business memberships (€90-94 per person/year, minimum 5 seats) and book memberships (4-6 titles annually at €9-32.50 per format) provide diversified recurring revenue, supplemented by book publishing (De Correspondent Uitgevers B.V.), donations, events, and a speaker bureau.
The company is privately held as Correspondent B.V., with a subsidiary (De Correspondent Uitgevers B.V.) handling publishing. Its articles of association cap profit distribution at 5% of revenue, reinforcing a mission-driven governance model supported by shareholder Stichting Democratie & Media. The English-language sister publication The Correspondent ceased operations on January 1, 2021. The current roster of approximately 20 staff correspondents — including internationally recognized authors such as Rutger Bregman — has driven content that has translated into 117 international book editions across 46 languages.
De Correspondent firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- De Correspondent
- Legal name
- Correspondent B.V.
- Website
- https://decorrespondent.nl
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- De Correspondent is a Dutch ad-free, member-funded journalism platform founded in 2013 serving 63,000+ paying subscribers with in-depth reporting on societal themes via website, mobile app, podcasts, and an affiliated book publishing arm.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
De Correspondent industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Journalism / Digital News Media
- NAICS
- Newspaper Publishers (513110), Periodical Publishers (513120), Book Publishers (513130), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210)
- SIC
- Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Digital Magazine & Newspaper Subscription Platforms (Paywalls, Membership) (MPAJAMAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB), Alternative/Independent Newsweeklies & Opinion Press (MPAJADAH), Investigative & Nonprofit News Organizations (MPAJADAF)
Keywords
Where De Correspondent is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Amsterdam
- HQ country
- Netherlands
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
De Correspondent business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Membership Subscriptions: Primary revenue stream from 63,000+ paying members. Individual memberships at €10.50/month, €105/year, or €200/two years. Business memberships from €94-90 per person annually. Revenue from book publications, event tickets, corporate partnerships, and donations supplement membership income.
- Book Publishing and Sales: De Correspondent Uitgevers publishes 4-6 books per year. Books are sold through the company's own kiosk shop (avoiding commission to large platforms like Bol.com), through book membership subscriptions (average €22.50 per paperback, €9 per e-book), and through retail distribution. Major bestseller 'De meeste mensen deugen' sold 600,000+ copies in Netherlands and 1.5 million globally in 46 languages.
- Business/Corporate Memberships: Corporate memberships sold to organizations with 5+ employees. Annual pricing: €94 per person for 5-50 memberships, €90 per person for 51-100 memberships, custom pricing for 100+. Billed via invoice.
- Donations: Additional donations from supporters beyond membership fees. Used to fund special projects like sending correspondents abroad or platform development.
- Events and Lectures: Revenue from speaking engagements, lectures, and theatrical tours by correspondents. Theatrical shows based on books (e.g., 'Maankoorts' by Marjolijn van Heemstra, Simon van Teutem's 2026 theater tour).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Individual Monthly Membership |
| Subscription | Annual | Individual Annual Membership |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Individual Two-Year Membership |
| Subscription | Annual | Business Membership (5-50 employees) |
| Subscription | Annual | Business Membership (51-100 employees) |
| Subscription | Annual | Business Membership (100+ employees) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Book Membership - Total Package |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Book Membership - Paperback Only |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Book Membership - E-book Only |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Book Membership - Audiobook Only |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Gift Membership - 3 months |
| Subscription | Annual | Gift Membership - 1 year |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
De Correspondent product offering
Product offeringCore offering
De Correspondent operates a subscription-based, ad-free Dutch online journalism platform accessible via its website and iOS/Android apps, providing members with daily in-depth articles, narrated audio stories, videos, podcasts, and a ~14,000-article archive. The platform sells individual and business memberships, and is complemented by De Correspondent Uitgevers, a book publishing subsidiary that releases 4-6 titles per year sold through an own kiosk shop, retail bookstores, and an optional Book Membership add-on.
Product overview
De Correspondent is a Dutch independent journalism platform organized as a single unified product with several complementary modules and sub-brands. The core platform (decorrespondent.nl) and mobile app (iOS/Android) provide subscription-based access to approximately 14,000 articles, daily narrated audio stories, videos, and two freely available podcasts ('Goede Gesprekken' and 'De Jesse Frederik Show'). The publishing division (De Correspondent Uitgevers) produces 4-6 books annually, available through an optional Book Membership add-on. Additional offerings include Business Memberships for organizations, Gift Memberships, multiple newsletter subscriptions, public events/lectures, and RSS feeds. The platform is fully ad-free and member-funded, with no public API.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Vonkjes: A pamphlet series of ideas that inspire, designed to spark public debate on major themes of our time.
Products and services
- De Correspondent Membership Platform Subscription-based online journalism platform (web + mobile) providing members with unlimited access to ~14,000 in-depth articles, daily narrated audio, video, podcasts, newsletters and full archive. Available to individuals (€10.50/mo, €105/yr, €200/two years) and organizations (business membership).
- De Correspondent Mobile App Mobile application for iOS and Android providing full platform access to members on smartphones/tablets, consolidating articles, audio stories, and video in one interface.
- Goede Gesprekken Podcast Podcast hosted by Lex Bohlmeijer featuring in-depth conversations, freely available without a membership. Distributed via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Deezer, and TuneIn.
- De Jesse Frederik Show Podcast Podcast by correspondent Jesse Frederik, freely available without a membership, distributed via major podcast platforms.
- Zakelijk Lidmaatschap (Business Membership) Organizational subscription providing bulk access to all journalism content for Dutch organizations with 5+ employees, billed annually via invoice. Pricing: €94/person/year for 5-50 seats, €90/person/year for 51-100 seats, custom for 100+.
- Boekenlidmaatschap (Book Membership) Subscription add-on receiving all 4-6 books published annually by De Correspondent Uitgevers, automatically delivered before retail release with no shipping costs. Options: Total package (avg €32.50), Paperback (avg €22.50), E-book (avg €9), Audiobook (avg €15).
- Cadeaulidmaatschap (Gift Membership) Gift membership available as 3-month (€31.50) or 1-year (€105) gift providing unlimited platform access; auto-terminates unless the recipient renews.
- De Correspondent Uitgevers (Book Publishing) Wholly-owned publishing subsidiary (De Correspondent Uitgevers B.V.) producing 4-6 books annually on major societal themes, sold through own kiosk, retail bookstores, and 117 international translation deals (46 languages). Includes the 'Vonkjes' pamphlet sub-series.
- Speaker Bureau (Lezingen) Speaking engagements by correspondents on topics including media, politics, poverty, healthcare, climate, and culture, bookable via [email protected].
- Events and Theatrical Tours Public events including lectures, theatrical tours (e.g., 'Maankoorts' by Marjolijn van Heemstra, Simon van Teutem's 2026 theater tour) and festival appearances (Bookfest, Rooted Festival, Betweter Festival).
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 1 million people reached with a climate-focused deepfake video of Mark Rutte
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use De Correspondent
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
De Correspondent technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration10 records
AI capability4 records
Feature1 record
De Correspondent partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Momkai (Design Studio)coreDesign studio co-founded by Harald Dunnink and Sebastian Kersten. Responsible for the website, app, brand identity, house style, book covers, campaigns, and the Respondens publishing system. Ongoing creative partnership.
- The Black ArchivesminorCollaboration on 'Maand van de Verzwegen Geschiedenis' (Month of Suppressed History), which led to changes in Dutch history textbooks through joint advocacy.
Scale indicators13 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights5 records
De Correspondent competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- De Volkskrant: One of the Netherlands' largest-circulation quality dailies, similarly cited by De Correspondent as a 25x-revenue incumbent. Competes for the same Dutch subscriber seeking substantive journalism, but operates a traditional broadsheet model across print, web, and apps.
- The Guardian: UK-headquartered, globally distributed digital-first news organization with a reader-funded membership model alongside other revenue. Comparable in mission emphasis on independence and reader support, but operates at vastly larger scale across multiple geographies and content verticals.
- Trouw: Established Dutch quality newspaper with a progressive, values-oriented editorial profile that overlaps with De Correspondent's audience and subject-matter focus. Competes for the same Dutch subscriber seeking substantive coverage of society, ethics, and politics, though Trouw is part of the larger DPG Media group.
- Het Financieele Dagblad (FD): Dutch financial and economic daily with a subscription-driven, ad-light model that overlaps with De Correspondent's corporate membership proposition. Targets professional readers and organizations, and represents an incumbent alternative in the Dutch paid news subscription market.
- NRC Media (NRC Handelsblad / nrc.nl): Major Dutch quality newspaper publisher referenced in De Correspondent's own FAQ as having roughly 25x its revenue. NRC competes head-to-head for Dutch subscribers seeking substantive news and analysis, but with a much broader portfolio (print, digital, multimedia) and ad-supported revenue.
Direct peers
- De Groene Amsterdammer: Long-running Dutch opinion and current affairs weekly that competes for the same progressive, civic-minded Dutch readership. Both publish in-depth analysis and opinion on Dutch politics, society, and culture, and both rely on subscriptions rather than advertising as their primary revenue model.
- Follow the Money (FTM): Dutch investigative journalism platform focused on financial, economic, and corporate accountability reporting. Both are Dutch independent, member- or donation-funded investigative outlets that have built reputations for rigorous, ad-free journalism outside the established newspaper system.
- ProPublica: US-based, mission-driven investigative journalism organization funded by members and donors rather than advertising. Mirrors De Correspondent's member-funded, ad-free, mission-driven model, and both have built reputations for award-winning investigative and explanatory journalism outside the conventional newspaper industry.
- Vrij Nederland: Dutch opinion and current affairs magazine with a long history of progressive, in-depth reporting on Dutch society and politics. Competes for the same Dutch reader segment that values long-form, opinion-driven journalism, and has moved to a digital-first, subscription-based model similar to De Correspondent.
- Blendle: Dutch pay-per-article and subscription news aggregation platform founded around the same time as De Correspondent. Both target Dutch readers with paid digital journalism models distinct from traditional newspapers, and both emerged from the same Dutch digital media innovation wave.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
De Correspondent social profiles
Digital presenceDe Correspondent financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
De Correspondent leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
De Correspondent subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
De Correspondent funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
De Correspondent M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about De Correspondent
What does De Correspondent do?
De Correspondent operates a subscription-based, ad-free Dutch online journalism platform accessible via its website and iOS/Android apps, providing members with daily in-depth articles, narrated audio stories, videos, podcasts, and a ~14,000-article archive. The platform sells individual and business memberships, and is complemented by De Correspondent Uitgevers, a book publishing subsidiary that releases 4-6 titles per year sold through an own kiosk shop, retail bookstores, and an optional Book Membership add-on.
Is De Correspondent a public or private company?
De Correspondent is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was De Correspondent founded?
De Correspondent was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is De Correspondent based?
De Correspondent is headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in the Europe region.
How does De Correspondent make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Membership Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are book Publishing and Sales, business/Corporate Memberships, donations and events and Lectures.
Who are De Correspondent's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are De Volkskrant, The Guardian, Trouw, Het Financieele Dagblad (FD) and NRC Media (NRC Handelsblad / nrc.nl). Direct peers are De Groene Amsterdammer, Follow the Money (FTM), ProPublica, Vrij Nederland and Blendle.
Does De Correspondent have an API?
No public API is recorded for De Correspondent.
What industry is De Correspondent in?
De Correspondent's product category is Online Journalism / Digital News Media. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAMAD, Digital Magazine & Newspaper Subscription Platforms (Paywalls, Membership), with a secondary code of MPAJADAB, Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital). Its NAICS code is 513110 and its SIC code is 2711.