TITANIC
TITANIC is Germany's longest-running independent satirical magazine (founded 1979), publishing monthly political satire, cartoons, and humor criticism for a German-speaking DACH readership via print subscriptions, digital access through Steady, mobile apps, newsstand distribution, and a Shopify merchandise store.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1979
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What TITANIC does
TITANIC is Germany's longest-running independent satirical magazine, founded in 1979 and operated as a private limited partnership (TITANIC-Verlag Georg-Büchner-Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH & Co. KG) headquartered in Frankfurt am Main. The publication is a monthly magazine delivering political satire, cartoons, humor criticism, letters to readers, audio documents, and commentary on current events to a German-speaking readership, primarily in the DACH region. It has a small core editorial team (around 6 staff) supported by approximately 50+ permanent contributors, with managing directors Sandra Thoms and Tim Wolff and editor-in-chief Torsten Gaitzsch.
The product portfolio centers on the print magazine and is monetized through a tiered subscription stack: Normalabo (12 print issues/yr from €82, €66 student), Digitalabo (€57.99/yr via Steady), Kombiabo (from €12/mo combining print + digital), and Probeabo (€13.50 three-month trial). Distribution relies on direct-to-consumer subscriptions and a core partnership with MZV Moderner Zeitschriften Vertrieb for newsstand and kiosk placement across Germany. Secondary revenue comes from newsletter advertising (TITANIC-Wochenrückblick, 18,000+ weekly subscribers on Fridays), a Shopify-powered merchandise store (books, gift items, postcards), and licensing of audio archive content (TITANIC-Tondokumente, including the Telefon-Terror prank series).
The underlying technology stack is commodity and content-led rather than tech-led: a WordPress CMS website, Steady for subscription billing and member login, Matomo for analytics, Shopify for e-commerce, and iOS/Android apps via pressmatrix. TITANIC owns an extensive editorial archive of 1,446+ pages spanning decades, which underpins the brand's differentiation in a saturated German media market. Customer concentration is low by virtue of a fully consumer-facing B2C model, with no external venture or PE capital disclosed and ownership remaining with the operating partnership.
TITANIC firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- TITANIC
- Legal name
- TITANIC-Verlag Georg-Büchner-Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH & Co. KG
- Website
- https://titanic-magazin.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1979
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- TITANIC is Germany's longest-running independent satirical magazine (founded 1979), publishing monthly political satire, cartoons, and humor criticism for a German-speaking DACH readership via print subscriptions, digital access through Steady, mobile apps, newsstand distribution, and a Shopify merchandise store.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
TITANIC industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Satirical Magazine Publishing
- NAICS
- Periodical Publishers (51312)
- SIC
- Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Alternative/Independent Newsweeklies & Opinion Press (MPAJADAH)
Keywords
Where TITANIC is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
TITANIC business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Print Subscriptions: Annual print magazine subscriptions (Normalabo) delivering 12 issues per year, with student discounts available
- Digital Subscriptions: Digital-only subscriptions (Digitalabo and Kombiabo) via Steady platform for reading in app or browser
- Advertising: Print advertising in magazine plus newsletter advertising (TITANIC-Wochenrückblick with 18,000+ subscribers) offering Lead-Banner and Premium-Banner placements
- Merchandise Sales: Online shop (Shopify-based) selling issues, books, and gift items
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Normalabo: 12 print issues annually, starting at 82 EUR (66 EUR for students) |
| Subscription | Annual | Digitalabo: 57.99 EUR annually for digital access |
| Hybrid | Monthly | Kombiabo: From 12 EUR/month combining print and digital |
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | Probeabo: 13.50 EUR for 3-month trial |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
TITANIC product offering
Product offeringCore offering
TITANIC publishes a monthly satirical magazine delivered in print and digital formats, featuring political satire, cartoons, humor criticism, columns, and commentary on current events for German-speaking readers. The core offering is supplemented by subscription tiers (print, digital, combo, trial), mobile apps, a weekly newsletter, audio content, an online archive, and merchandise sales.
Product overview
TITANIC is a German satirical magazine offering a multi-format content portfolio centered on its monthly publication featuring political satire, cartoons, humor criticism, and columns. The offering architecture comprises: (1) the core TITANIC magazine in print (Normalabo) and digital formats (Digitalabo/Kombiabo), (2) the TITANIC Shop for merchandise, (3) mobile apps for iOS/Android enabling digital reading, (4) the TITANIC-Wochenrückblick weekly newsletter, (5) TITANIC-Tondokumente audio content including the Telefon-Terror series, and (6) editorial sections Humorkritik and Vom Fachmann für Kenner. Subscriptions are managed through Steady platform, with e-commerce via Shopify.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- TITANIC Magazin (Das endgültige Satiremagazin) Germany's satirical magazine featuring political satire, cartoons, humor criticism, columns, and commentary on current events, published monthly in print and digital formats for the German-speaking public.
- Normalabo (Print Subscription)
Quantifiable outcome
- Monthly publication delivered to subscribers plus ongoing free online content
Companies that use TITANIC
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
TITANIC technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
TITANIC partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- MZV Moderner Zeitschriften Vertrieb GmbH & Co. KGcorePrimary distribution partner responsible for physical magazine distribution to newsstands and kiosks across Germany. Located at Ohmstraße 1, 85716 Unterschleißheim.
- Steady (steady.page)coreSubscription management and member login platform used for digital subscriptions (Digitalabo and Kombiabo). Provides platform infrastructure for managing recurring digital subscriptions.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
TITANIC competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
TITANIC social profiles
Digital presenceTITANIC financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
TITANIC leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
TITANIC funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
TITANIC 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 TITANIC
What does TITANIC do?
TITANIC publishes a monthly satirical magazine delivered in print and digital formats, featuring political satire, cartoons, humor criticism, columns, and commentary on current events for German-speaking readers. The core offering is supplemented by subscription tiers (print, digital, combo, trial), mobile apps, a weekly newsletter, audio content, an online archive, and merchandise sales.
Is TITANIC a public or private company?
TITANIC is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was TITANIC founded?
TITANIC was founded in 1979. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is TITANIC based?
TITANIC is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does TITANIC make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Print Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are digital Subscriptions, advertising and merchandise Sales.
Does TITANIC have an API?
No public API is recorded for TITANIC.
What industry is TITANIC in?
TITANIC's product category is Satirical Magazine Publishing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAEAO, News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines, with a secondary code of MPAJADAH, Alternative/Independent Newsweeklies & Opinion Press. Its NAICS code is 51312 and its SIC code is 2721.