QNS

What QNS does

QNS is a hyperlocal digital news and community publication serving Queens, New York, operated by Schneps Communications (also referred to as Schneps Media), a privately-held, family-owned regional media company headquartered in Bayside, NY. The platform delivers Queens-specific news, sports, entertainment, dining, real estate, transportation, health, and neighborhood information across 20+ sub-markets including Astoria, Flushing, Jamaica, Forest Hills, Bayside, Long Island City, and Ridgewood. Its archive dates back to November 1997, and it operates as one of several borough/community news properties in the Schneps Media portfolio alongside amNY, Brooklyn Paper, Bronx Times, Gay City News, Long Island Press, Dan's Papers, Brownstoner, Behind the Hedges, and Airport Voice.

The product surface is built on a standard WordPress content management system and extends beyond editorial coverage into a multi-property community utility stack: qns.com (news and neighborhood guides), events.qns.com (community events calendar with submission), jobs.qns.com (local job listings board), bestof.qns.com (local awards), games.qns.com (casual games), and a Home Pros service directory. Content is freely accessible with no paywall or subscription requirement, and distribution includes email newsletters, social media (X, Instagram), podcasts via Schneps Media, and cross-promotion across the parent network's publications. Real estate listings are sourced from the sister Brownstoner property.

QNS generates revenue primarily through display and sponsored-content advertising targeted at local Queens SMBs, job posting fees on jobs.qns.com, event promotion, and directory-type monetization on Home Pros and best-of properties. There is no subscription or paywall component. Customer segments are two-sided: Queens borough residents as the readership, and local businesses plus advertisers as the paying side. No external institutional investment, public listing, or M&A activity involving QNS specifically is disclosed; ownership rests with the Schneps family, with Joshua Schneps identified as a key executive contact.

Name

QNS

Legal name

Schneps Communications

Website

https://qns.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

QNS is a hyperlocal digital news and community platform serving Queens, NY residents with local news, sports, entertainment, events, jobs, and neighborhood guides, operated by Schneps Communications within the broader Schneps Media regional publishing network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local News Media

NAICS

Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (5162), Information (51)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Neighborhood Communities (BPAMABAG)

Keywords

• Local news media
• Community journalism
• Hyperlocal news
• Digital publishing
• Online news platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Bayside

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

QNS is a hyperlocal digital news publication serving Queens, NY, providing comprehensive coverage of neighborhood news, sports, politics, entertainment, food, and community events across 13+ Queens neighborhoods. The platform operates a WordPress-based website with integrated community events calendar, local jobs board, podcasts, email newsletters, and an extensive archive of articles dating back to 1997. Revenue is generated primarily through digital advertising, sponsored content, and paid job postings from local businesses and employers.

Product overview

QNS (Queens News, Sports, Entertainment & Community) is a digital news and media publication operated by Schneps Communications/Schneps Media. It serves as a community news website covering Queens, New York, providing local news, sports coverage, entertainment content, community information, and events listings. The platform functions as part of a broader network of local media properties including amNY, Brooklyn Paper, and other regional publications. Key features include news articles across various categories (business, health, politics, real estate, transportation), an events calendar (events.qns.com), a jobs board (jobs.qns.com), and neighborhood-specific coverage.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• QNS.com News & Community Website Primary hyperlocal news website providing comprehensive coverage of Queens, NY, neighborhood news, sports, politics, entertainment, food, dining, and community information across 13+ named neighborhoods. Free to access for Queens residents.
• QNS Community Events Calendar

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• APM TerminalsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 20 November 2025QNS Container Services (a different entity sharing the QNS name) is a local partner of APM Terminals for the Laldia Container Terminal project at Chittagong Port, Bangladesh. This is a separate company from QNS.com news publication.
• Schneps Communications (Parent Company)coreOthersQNS is operated by Schneps Communications (also referred to as Schneps Media), a regional media company that owns and operates multiple local news publications in the New York metropolitan area.
• Schneps Media Network PublicationscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerQNS cross-promotes and shares content with sister publications including amNY, Brooklyn Paper, Bronx Times, Gay City News, Long Island Press, Dan's Papers, Behind the Hedges, and Airport Voice.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• amNY: Sister Schneps Media publication covering all of NYC with broader metro scope; comparable in ad model and digital format, and a key cross-promotion partner inside the Schneps network.
• Time Out New York: Established NYC digital media brand covering dining, events, and culture with overlapping advertisers and audiences in Queens; broader but competes for the same local-lifestyle attention.
• Brooklyn Paper: Sister Schneps Media publication serving Brooklyn with the same hyperlocal editorial and ad-sales playbook that QNS uses for Queens, making it a directly transferable operational template.

Emerging players

• Nextdoor: Neighborhood-anchored community platform where Queens residents discover local events, recommendations, and business information — a substitute channel competing for the same user attention and local ad budgets.

Direct peers

• Queens Chronicle: Independent weekly newspaper and digital site serving Queens borough, competing head-to-head with QNS for the same local news, events, and advertising market.
• Brownstoner: Sister Schneps Media property focused on NYC real estate and neighborhood coverage; operates the real-estate vertical embedded in QNS.com and is a direct internal comparable.
• Queens Courier: Long-standing direct competitor covering Queens with print and digital editions targeting the same residents and local advertisers as QNS.
• Gothamist: NYC-focused digital news outlet (WNYC/Gothamist network) covering all five boroughs including Queens, with similar community-events and local-news editorial mix.
• Patch: National hyperlocal news network organized by town/neighborhood, monetized primarily through local advertising. Closest direct analogue to QNS's neighborhood-by-neighborhood coverage model, but at national scale.
• Bronx Times: Sister Schneps Media publication serving the Bronx with identical hyperlocal editorial and ad-sales model; serves as a near-perfect operational analogue and a benchmark for what QNS could scale into within its own borough.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/qns
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-queens-courier
• Instagraminstagram.com/schnepsmedia
• Facebookfacebook.com/QNS

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about QNS