Newsquest

What Newsquest does

Newsquest Media Group Limited is the second largest regional newspaper and local media publisher in the United Kingdom, operating a portfolio of more than 250 local news brands and magazines across print and digital channels. Founded in 1996 as a management buy-out of Reed Regional Newspapers (backed by KKR) and acquired by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE-listed, formerly USA Today Co.) in July 1999, the company is headquartered in London with a registered office in Bournemouth, and operates additional offices in Manchester, Edinburgh, and Oxford. The group reaches approximately 50 million digital visitors per month and 4 million print readers per week, and holds heritage titles including Berrow's Worcester Journal, first published in 1690 and recognized as the oldest surviving newspaper in the world.

The company's product portfolio operates across three integrated layers: (1) core publishing of news brands, magazines, and specialist media; (2) digital marketing services for SMEs under the LOCALiQ brand, underpinned by the modular ReachEdge SaaS suite (directory listings across 500+ directories, reputation management, AI live chat, Webcard pages, +Site websites, phone tracking with call recording, and programmatic advertising integration); and (3) specialist vertical platforms including s1jobs and the jobs24 network (regional job portals), Exchange & Mart (classifieds), Newsquest Contract Print (external printing services), Zoom In Leaflet Solutions (direct mail), Newsquest Specialist Media, and the Public Notice Portal. AI capabilities are embedded across the stack: NLP-based CV parsing (Textkernel), an award-winning AI-Assisted Reporter tool for newsrooms, generative AI ad creative (EKCS Mediaferry), AI live chat, recommendation engines, and predictive call analytics.

Newsquest's revenue model is multi-stream: print and digital advertising is the primary revenue driver across the local news portfolio, supplemented by digital subscriptions, job listing transaction fees (s1jobs, jobs24), managed services revenue from LOCALiQ digital marketing for SMEs, professional services revenue from contract printing, and affiliate referral commissions (primarily via Skimlinks). Go-to-market is predominantly sales-led with dedicated field sales teams for enterprise advertisers and a Sales Academy training pipeline, plus a digital marketing consultancy motion targeting SMEs. Customers span individual readers, local advertisers, SMEs using the LOCALiQ/ReachEdge stack, employers and job seekers on the recruitment platforms, and contract printing clients. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gannett Co., Inc. and does not publicly disclose standalone revenue.

Name

Newsquest

Legal name

Newsquest Media Group Limited

Website

https://newsquest.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Newsquest Media Group is the UK’s second largest regional newspaper publisher, operating 250+ local news brands and magazines reaching 50 million monthly digital visitors and 4 million weekly print readers. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gannett Co., Inc., and generates revenue primarily from advertising, with additional streams from LOCALiQ/ReachEdge SME digital marketing SaaS, job platforms, subscriptions, and contract printing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Newspaper Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (51311), Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Commercial Printing (2750)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO), Magazine & Newspaper Subscriptions / Delivery Retail (CRALAAAH)

Keywords

• Regional newspaper publishing
• Local news media
• Digital marketing services
• Online recruitment platforms
• Classified advertising marketplace

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Print and Digital Advertising: Newsquest generates primary revenue from advertising across its portfolio of more than 200 local news brands and magazines. This includes display advertising in print newspapers and online properties, with both local and national advertisers.
2. Digital Subscriptions: Revenue from digital subscription services for news content, providing readers access to premium online journalism.
3. Job Listing Services: Revenue from job websites including s1jobs, jobs24, and regional job portals that connect employers with job seekers.
4. LOCALiQ Digital Marketing Services: Digital marketing services for SMEs including online directory listings, reputation management, live chat, website creation, and advertising solutions through the LOCALiQ brand.
5. Contract Printing: Newsquest Contract Print provides printing services for external clients beyond its own publications.
6. Affiliate Revenue: Commission revenue from affiliate links in editorial content, primarily through the Skimlinks network, generating revenue when readers purchase products through affiliate links.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Newsquest Media Group is the second largest UK regional newspaper publisher, operating a portfolio of 250+ local news brands and magazines reaching 4 million weekly print readers and 50 million monthly digital visitors. The company sells print and digital advertising across these properties and offers LOCALiQ/ReachEdge digital marketing services (online directories, reputation management, live chat, websites, phone tracking) to UK SMEs, alongside job websites (s1jobs, jobs24), classifieds (Exchange & Mart), specialist media, contract printing, and leaflet distribution.

Product overview

Newsquest Media Group is the UK's leading local news publisher operating a multi-brand portfolio of over 200 regional newspapers and magazines in print and online, generating 50 million digital visitors monthly and reaching 4 million weekly print readers. The product portfolio comprises three integrated layers: (1) Core Publishing: News Brands and Magazines delivering trusted local journalism; (2) Digital Marketing Platforms: LOCALiQ as the primary SMB marketing services brand, complemented by ReachEdge—a modular SaaS suite bundling online directory listings (500+ directories), reputation management, programmatic advertising, AI-powered live chat, Webcard landing pages, custom websites (+Site), and phone tracking with call analytics; and (3) Specialist Vertical Platforms: job search sites (s1jobs, jobs24 network), Exchange & Mart classifieds, Newsquest Specialist Media, Zoom In Leaflet Solutions, and Newsquest Contract Print. The Public Notice Portal adds a government-mandated consultation and archive service to the ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LOCALiQ: Digital marketing services for SMEs
• s1jobs
• Exchange & Mart
• Newsquest Specialist Media
• Newsquest Contract Print
• Zoom In Leaflet Solutions

Products and services

• News Brands

Quantifiable outcome

• 50 million monthly digital visitors
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration15 records

AI capability14 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Web.comcoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party service provider for online directory listings, reputation management, and Webcard services within the ReachEdge suite. Web.com provides the underlying technology for LOCALiQ digital marketing services.
• TextkernelcoreTechnology or IntegrationProvides AI-powered CV parsing services (smart parsing) for the job websites' CV database, enabling automatic matching of job seekers with relevant employment opportunities.
• EKCS / Mediaferry AIcoreTechnology or IntegrationPartner providing Smart Design AI technology for ad creation and proofing, automating tasks and ensuring brand consistency in creative workflows.
• Gannett Co. Inc.coreOthersParent company listed on New York Stock Exchange. Newsquest was acquired by USA TODAY Co. (now Gannett) in July 1999. Gannett operates USA Today and other media properties globally.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Newsquest Media Group Ltd:

Broad incumbents

• Gannett Co., Inc. Newsquest's NYSE-listed parent company and the largest US newspaper publisher (USA Today network). Closely related through ownership and shared ad-tech/content strategies, but operates primarily in the US market.
• Guardian Media Group: Owner of The Guardian and The Observer, operating as a major UK national digital-first news brand. Overlaps with Newsquest in UK news publishing and digital advertising, but is a national outlet rather than a regional group.
• DMGT (Daily Mail and General Trust): UK-based media conglomerate owning the Daily Mail, MailOnline, Metro, and i newspaper, plus B2B information businesses. Competes with Newsquest in UK national/regional news advertising and audience, but at much larger scale and with a different mix.

Direct peers

• Tindle Newspapers: UK family-owned regional newspaper group operating local titles across England, Wales, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man. Similar regional publishing model and audience to Newsquest at smaller scale.
• Reach plc: The UK's largest regional and national newspaper publisher (Mirror, Express, Star, Manchester Evening News, etc.). Direct competitor to Newsquest in regional UK print and digital publishing, sharing the same customer base of local advertisers and readers.
• National World plc: UK regional news publisher (formerly JPI Media) operating titles including The Scotsman, Yorkshire Post, and Irish News. Directly comparable to Newsquest as a regional multi-title publisher with overlapping geographic and audience footprints.
• Iliffe Media: Independent UK family-owned regional newspaper publisher with titles across the Midlands and East of England. Comparable as a UK-focused regional news operator competing in overlapping geographies with Newsquest titles.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NQCareers
• Facebookfacebook.com/newsquestmediagroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tu-pagina-primera

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A4 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Newsquest