Manchester Evening News

What Manchester Evening News does

Manchester Evening News (legal entity M.E.N Media) is a regional daily newspaper and digital-first news publisher founded in 1868, serving the Greater Manchester area across all ten metropolitan boroughs (Manchester, Bury, Bolton, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and Wigan). The publication operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reach plc, one of the UK's largest multimedia publishing groups, and is headquartered in Manchester. Its core product is the manchestereveningnews.co.uk website, complemented by iOS and Android mobile applications, daily and topic-specific email newsletters, push notification alerts, WhatsApp news channels for Manchester United and Manchester City supporters, and a continuing print newspaper distributed via newsagents.

The product portfolio is organised around a freemium model: standard news content is free, supported by display advertising and sponsored partner stories, while a premium subscription tier launched in November 2025 provides exclusive content, subscriber rewards, and competitions. Additional monetisation streams include content syndication and licensing through Mirrorpix (Reach's licensing arm), print subscription sales, and affiliate revenue from voucher codes and the Marketplace Live classifieds integration. The underlying technology stack consists of a web CMS, cookie-based advertising, RSS feeds, newsletter delivery, push notification systems, and third-party integrations for weather (weather.com) and flight data (FlightRadar24), with no disclosed proprietary AI/ML capabilities.

The primary audiences are Greater Manchester residents seeking local news, weather, and community information, plus dedicated Manchester United and Manchester City supporter bases consuming match coverage, transfer news, and analysis. Secondary audiences include TV/soap enthusiasts (notably Coronation Street), food and entertainment seekers, and recruitment/job seekers. B2B customers are advertisers and partner brands such as Slimming World, SHEIN, Revolut, TUI, ASDA, and Aldi, which fund sponsored content, competitions, and prize giveaways. The business model is therefore a hybrid of consumer subscription, advertising, sponsored content, and syndication, operating within the structural pressures of the UK regional print and digital news market.

Name

Manchester Evening News

Legal name

M.E.N Media

Website

https://manchestereveningnews.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1868

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional News Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper Publishers (51311)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industry

Consumer News & Digital Newsrooms (Web/App-First) (MPAJADAD)

Keywords

• Regional news publishing
• Local journalism
• Digital news media
• Newspaper publishing
• Online news platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Oldham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Digital Subscriptions: Premium subscription service launched November 2025 offering exclusive content, offers, and rewards. Part of Reach's broader initiative to implement paid subscriptions across its titles.
2. Display Advertising: Traditional advertising revenue from website display ads, native advertising, and partner story features
3. Sponsored Content / Partner Stories: Branded content and advertorial features from partners including Slimming World, SHEIN, Revolut, TUI, and various local businesses
4. Content Licensing: Syndication and content licensing through Mirrorpix
5. Physical Newspaper Sales: Print newspaper sales through newsagents and direct subscription
6. Affiliate/Referral Revenue: Revenue from marketplace, voucher codes, and directory services

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Manchester Evening News is a regional daily newspaper and digital news platform serving Greater Manchester. It publishes local news, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, and community-focused content via a print edition, a website, mobile apps, and email newsletters. The publication operates under the ownership of Reach plc, one of the UK's largest regional news publishers.

Product overview

Manchester Evening News operates as a multi-platform digital news publisher offering a unified product portfolio centered on its core website with several integrated modules. The primary offering is the Manchester Evening News Website delivering local news, opinion, sport, and celebrity content for Greater Manchester. Supporting modules include mobile applications for iOS and Android, a recently launched Premium Subscription Service offering exclusive content and rewards, Newsletter Services for topic-specific email delivery, a Competitions Platform for reader engagement, Partner Stories for sponsored content, a Travel Content Hub, and a dedicated Manchester Weather Service. The portfolio functions as a single unified platform with differentiated access tiers and specialized content sections rather than separate standalone products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Reach plccoreOthersParent company owning Manchester Evening News. Reach is one of the UK's largest media publishers with portfolio including Liverpool ECHO, WalesOnline, and numerous regional titles. Implements paid subscription strategy across its titles.
• InYourAreacoreTechnology or IntegrationHyperlocal news and services platform branded under Manchester Evening News, covering local services, businesses, and community information for Greater Manchester areas.
• Mirrorpix (Syndication & Licensing)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorContent syndication and licensing arm of Reach for distributing and licensing news content to third parties.
• TotallyLegalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJobs board partnership providing recruitment advertising under the navigation link for North West England positions.
• Funeral Notices (funeral-notices.co.uk)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership with funeral-notices.co.uk for funeral notice listings specific to North West Greater Manchester area.
• Public Notice PortalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership for public notice advertising and legal notices distribution in the Manchester region.
• Marketplace LiveminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNational marketplace integration providing classified advertising and e-commerce opportunities.
• Google NewscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDesignated as 'Preferred Source' on Google News platform, providing enhanced visibility and distribution for Manchester Evening News content.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Direct peers

• Liverpool ECHO: Sister regional daily under Reach plc serving Liverpool and Merseyside. Operates an identical multi-platform model (web, app, print, newsletter, partner stories) with the same November 2025 subscription launch — making it the closest like-for-like comparable to MEN.
• WalesOnline: Another Reach plc regional flagship covering Wales. Operates the same digital-plus-print monetisation stack, including the simultaneous subscription rollout, and competes for the same UK regional advertiser budgets as MEN.
• Yorkshire Evening Post: Long-established regional evening daily serving Leeds/West Yorkshire with digital, app and print presence. Closely comparable to MEN in audience geography, sport coverage intensity and advertising-led revenue mix.
• Birmingham Mail: Regional daily serving the West Midlands with a comparable multi-platform offering. Strong sports coverage of Aston Villa and Birmingham City parallels MEN's Manchester United/City vertical.
• ChronicleLive (Newcastle Chronicle): Regional news outlet serving North East England via website, app and print. Operates the same freemium subscription-plus-advertising model and shares target advertiser categories with MEN.

Emerging players

• ManchesterWorld: Digital-only local news outlet covering Greater Manchester, part of the NationalWorld network. Directly competes with MEN in the same hyperlocal market and offers an alternative for digital-only advertisers targeting the region.
• The Athletic: Subscription-based sports news platform with deep Manchester United and Manchester City coverage. While nationally and globally scoped, it directly competes with MEN for premium sports readers and subscription wallet share in the same clubs.

Broad incumbents

• The Guardian — Manchester: National digital-first publisher with dedicated Manchester vertical. Operates a subscription model and competes for premium reader attention and Greater Manchester-relevant advertising, particularly in sport and culture verticals.
• Manchester Evening News (Reach plc) — Daily Mirror sister title: Reach plc's national tabloid sister title. While not regionally focused, it shares infrastructure, content licensing via Mirrorpix, and competes for overlapping Greater Manchester advertiser spend at a national level.
• BBC North West Tonight: Public broadcaster's regional TV and online news service covering Greater Manchester. Competes for the same local news audience and advertisers' attention, though funded differently via licence fee rather than ads or subscriptions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/salesharksmen
• Facebookfacebook.com/manchestereveningnews
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/manchestereveningnewsbusiness
• Instagraminstagram.com/manchestereveningnews

Compliance1 record

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 Manchester Evening News