20 minutes

What 20 minutes does

20 Minutes is a French private digital news media company operating a multi-platform free, advertising-supported news network centered on the 20minutes.fr website. The company serves the general French-speaking public with continuous coverage across politics, society, world and economy news, sports, high-tech, entertainment, and lifestyle, including nine regional/local French editions. Its product surface spans a website, iOS and Android mobile applications, 20 Minutes TV (live and replay video streaming with original programming), a podcast network (including Minute Papillon, Sixième science, Tout Sexplique), browser-based games (a French Wordle, Sudoku, Mots Fléchés, Solitaire), and adjacent utility services (horoscopes, traffic info, product manuals, legal notices). The company operates an ecosystem of eight wholly-owned specialized sub-brands — Sportune, Minutes Maison, Bébés et Mamans, Journal des Seniors, Cuisine d'Annie, Mes Notices, 20 Minutes TV, and the Podcast Network — that target distinct audience segments, plus a dedicated 20 Minutes Média advertising division that commercializes its inventory across web, mobile, video, and social channels. Distribution relies on a self-serve consumer model combined with broad social-media presence (Facebook, X, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Dailymotion, Flipboard, WhatsApp) and newsletter/email channels. Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed but the model is advertising-led, supplemented by affiliate commerce via Guide d'achat and service-style traffic from utility verticals. No parent company, PE sponsor, or institutional investor is identified in the source data; ownership and financial details (revenue, headcount, funding) are not disclosed.

Name

20 minutes

Legal name

20 Minutes

Website

https://20minutes.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

20 Minutes is a French private digital news company operating 20minutes.fr, mobile apps, and 20 Minutes TV to deliver free, ad-supported news, sports, entertainment, and lifestyle coverage to French-speaking consumers across France.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

20 Minutes is a French-language free digital news platform that delivers real-time news coverage across general news, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, and practical information. The company distributes content through its 20minutes.fr website, mobile applications (iOS/Android), 20 Minutes TV live streaming, a podcast network, and vertical sub-brands such as Sportune (sports) and Minutes Maison (lifestyle/home).

Product overview

20 Minutes is a French news media company operating a multi-platform news network. The core product is the 20minutes.fr news website offering comprehensive coverage across 15+ content categories including politics, world news, society, economy, sports, high-tech, and entertainment. The platform extends through 20 Minutes TV (live streaming and replays), a podcasts vertical (including Minute Papillon, Sixième science, Tout Sexplique), and an online games section (Sudoku, Mots Fléchés, Solitaire, etc.). Additional services include a shopping guide, horoscopes, TV program listings, and 8 specialized sub-brands covering verticals such as home decoration (Minutes Maison), sports business (Sportune), parenting (Bébé(s) et Mamans), seniors (Journal des Seniors), and cooking (Cuisine d'Annie). The company also offers mobile applications for iOS and Android, plus utility services like legal notices, traffic info, and product manuals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 20 Minutes TV: Video streaming platform with live TV, replays, and original programming including shows like On vous en dit +, 20' Arena, Plein les poches, Story, and other original content
• Sportune
• Minutes Maison
• Bébes et Mamans
• Journal des Seniors
• Cuisine d'Annie
• 20 Minutes Podcast Network
• 20 Minutes Guide d'achat
• 20 Minutes Games
• 20 Minutes Média

Products and services

• 20minutes.fr News Website

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Franceinfo: Public broadcaster France Télévisions' continuous news platform, combining web, mobile, and live TV. Directly comparable to 20 Minutes' free, ad-free (publicly funded), multi-platform continuous news offering.
• Le Monde: France's flagship national daily with a major digital subscription business. Directly comparable as a leading French digital news destination with national/local coverage, multimedia extensions, and competing for the same advertising and reader attention.
• Le Figaro: Historic French national newspaper with a large digital audience and subscription plus advertising model. Closely comparable to 20 Minutes in offering broad-topic French news coverage with digital-first extensions.
• Le Parisien: Major French regional/national daily (now Le Parisien-Aujourd'hui en France) with strong digital reach. Directly comparable to 20 Minutes as a free-access digital news platform serving general French audiences across national and regional topics.
• BFMTV: Leading French continuous news TV channel with a large digital news site. Comparable to 20 Minutes TV + 20minutes.fr as an integrated live-TV and digital news destination targeting general French audiences.
• L'Express: Major French news weekly with a substantial digital footprint covering politics, economy, and society. Comparable to 20 Minutes as a French digital news outlet serving generalist audiences with advertising and subscription offerings.
• HuffPost France: French edition of HuffPost, a digital-native general news and lifestyle platform. Closely comparable to 20 Minutes as a free, ad-supported, multi-vertical digital news outlet targeting mass French audiences.
• Slate.fr: French edition of the digital news magazine covering news, culture, and lifestyle. Comparable to 20 Minutes as a free, ad-supported French-language digital news outlet with broad-topic coverage and multimedia extensions.

Emerging players

• Brut: Digital-native French media company focused on social-first video journalism. Comparable to 20 Minutes' 20 Minutes TV and social-heavy strategy as a digital-first French news brand monetized via social platforms and advertising.
• Konbini: French digital-native media brand covering pop culture, entertainment, and viral content. Comparable to 20 Minutes' lifestyle/entertainment verticals as a free, ad-supported, social-distributed French digital publisher.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/20Minutes
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCD25QI36ly-8hWm9OPOz7aw
• Facebookfacebook.com/20minutes
• Instagraminstagram.com/20minutesfrance
• TikToktiktok.com/@20minutesfrance?lang=fr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries8 records

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 20 minutes