Townsquare
Townsquare Media (NYSE: TSQ) is a multi-platform digital media and advertising company operating 342 local radio station brands, national digital media properties, live event properties, and digital marketing/advertising subsidiaries (Townsquare Interactive and Townsquare Ignite) serving local advertisers, national brands, and SMBs across the United States.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1994
- HeadquartersSpartanburg, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Townsquare does
Townsquare Media, Inc. is a multi-platform digital media and advertising company headquartered in the United States and listed on the NYSE under ticker TSQ. Founded in 1994, the company operates three core business segments: Local Media (a network of 342 radio station brands across US markets including WKXW 101.5, WGRD 97.9, WYRK 106.5, and KTDY 99.9), National Media (digital properties including popcrush.com, TasteofCountry.com, and screencrush.com), and Live Events (the Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival in Tyler, Texas and Taste of Fort Collins in Colorado). The company serves a diversified customer base of local advertisers, national brands, and small-to-medium local businesses seeking both broadcast and digital audience reach.
The company complements its core media platform with two wholly-owned digital marketing and advertising subsidiaries: Townsquare Interactive, which provides SEO, reputation management, social media management, business listings, and web/mobile presence solutions to local SMBs, and Townsquare Ignite, a programmatic advertising platform enabling national advertisers to access local audiences across the company's network. The underlying technology stack spans traditional radio broadcasting infrastructure, owned-and-operated digital publishing platforms, programmatic ad-serving systems, and digital marketing SaaS tools.
Townsquare generates revenue across five streams: local media advertising, national media advertising, Townsquare Interactive subscription-based digital marketing services, Townsquare Ignite programmatic advertising, and live event transactions (tickets, sponsorships, vendor participation). Distribution is conducted primarily through direct field sales teams targeting local advertisers, national advertiser relationships, and SMB outbound sales. In Q1 (reported May 2026), digital revenue contributed 59% of net revenue and digital profit accounted for 63% of segment profit, signaling a material structural shift toward digital operations within the company's revenue mix.
Townsquare firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Townsquare
- Legal name
- Townsquare Media, Inc.
- Website
- https://town-square.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1994
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Townsquare Media (NYSE: TSQ) is a multi-platform digital media and advertising company operating 342 local radio station brands, national digital media properties, live event properties, and digital marketing/advertising subsidiaries (Townsquare Interactive and Townsquare Ignite) serving local advertisers, national brands, and SMBs across the United States.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Townsquare industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Radio Broadcasting & Digital Advertising
- NAICS
- Broadcasting and Content Providers (516), Advertising Agencies (54181), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)
- SIC
- Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832), Services-Advertising (7310)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Local Radio Station Groups (Owned & Operated/Station Chains) (MPABACAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Neighborhood & Community Markets/Pop-Ups (Community-Led Bazaars) (MPAGAEAJ)
Keywords
Where Townsquare is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Spartanburg
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Townsquare business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Local Media Advertising: Radio advertising and digital advertising solutions for local businesses across 342 radio station brands in local markets. Digital revenue contributed 59% of net revenue.
- National Media Advertising: Digital advertising across national digital media brands including popcrush.com, TasteofCountry.com, and screencrush.com websites.
- Townsquare Interactive Digital Marketing Services: Digital marketing solutions for local businesses including SEO, reputation management, social media management, business listings, and web/mobile presence.
- Townsquare Ignite: Programmatic advertising and marketing technology solutions.
- Live Events: Live event properties including Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival and Taste of Fort Collins. Revenue from event tickets, sponsorships, and vendor participation.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Townsquare product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Townsquare Media operates a multi-platform media and advertising company spanning 342 local radio station brands, national digital media properties (popcrush.com, TasteofCountry.com, screencrush.com), live event properties, and digital marketing services. The company sells advertising across its owned-and-operated media platforms and provides digital marketing solutions (SEO, reputation management, social media management, business listings, web presence) to local businesses through its Townsquare Interactive subsidiary and programmatic advertising through Townsquare Ignite.
Product overview
Townsquare is a multi-platform media and advertising company operating a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core platform consists of three main business segments: Local Media (342 radio station brands across the US), National Media (digital properties including popcrush.com, TasteofCountry.com, and screencrush.com), and Live Events (Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival and Taste of Fort Collins). These are complemented by two digital marketing modules: Townsquare Interactive (offering SEO, reputation management, social media management, and business listings solutions for local businesses) and Townsquare Ignite (programmatic advertising for national advertisers targeting local audiences). The company generates revenue through both traditional radio advertising and an increasing proportion of digital revenue, with digital accounting for 59% of net revenue and 63% of segment profit in Q1.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Townsquare Interactive: Digital marketing and solutions organization offering a comprehensive set of products to help local businesses reach more customers, generate leads and grow their online presence across web, mobile and beyond.
- Townsquare Ignite
- Local Media Brands
- National Media Brands
- Live Events
Products and services
- Local Media (Radio Stations) A network of 342 local radio station brands across the United States, including stations such as WKXW 101.5 (New Jersey News & Talk), WGRD 97.9 (Grand Rapids' Rock Station), WYRK 106.5 (Buffalo's Country), and KTDY 99.9 (Lafayette's Best Variety). These stations sell local advertising inventory to regional and local businesses across U.S. markets.
- National Media A portfolio of national digital media brands including popcrush.com (pop music content), TasteofCountry.com (country music content), and screencrush.com (movie and TV content). These properties provide advertising inventory and content across national digital channels for national brand advertisers.
- Live Events Owned and operated live event experiences including the Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival (annual May event in Downtown Tyler, Texas celebrating Texas barbecue and Red Dirt Music) and the Taste of Fort Collins (a family-friendly 3-day celebration for Northern Coloradoans). Revenue is generated from event tickets, sponsorships, and vendor participation.
- Townsquare Interactive A digital marketing and solutions organization offering a comprehensive set of products to help local businesses reach more customers, generate leads, and grow their online presence. Services include search engine optimization, reputation management, social media management, business listings, and web & mobile presence solutions with premium service and support. Sold to local SMBs through direct sales.
- Townsquare Ignite A programmatic advertising and digital marketing platform that enables national advertisers to reach local audiences across Townsquare's network of radio stations and digital properties.
Quantifiable outcome
- Digital revenue contributed 59% of net revenue in Q1
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Townsquare
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Townsquare technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Townsquare partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Townsquare competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Beasley Broadcast Group: Mid-market US radio broadcaster operating local stations across multiple markets with growing digital operations. Comparable business model and customer segments.
- Audacy: Major US radio operator (formerly Entercom/CBS Radio) running local stations, national digital audio brands, and programmatic. Closely comparable in segment mix and customer base.
- Emmis Communications: Indianapolis-based radio broadcasting company with local stations and digital publishing assets. Directly comparable in local radio and digital content mix.
- Saga Communications: Small/mid-cap US radio broadcaster focused on local radio and digital. Comparable in business model and customer base though smaller in scale.
- Salem Communications: US radio operator focused on news/talk and Christian formats with a complementary digital media portfolio. Comparable local radio broadcasting model though smaller in scale.
- Cumulus Media: Second-largest US radio broadcaster with a similar local footprint and digital audio extensions including Westwood One. Comparable in scale, customer mix, and digital transformation narrative.
- iHeartMedia: The largest US radio broadcaster with a parallel digital and podcast business. Directly comparable to Townsquare across local radio advertising, digital audio, and live events.
Broad incumbents
- Spotify: Global digital audio streaming leader. Competes with Townsquare's digital audio inventory for advertising dollars and listener attention, particularly among younger demographics.
- The Trade Desk: Leading independent programmatic advertising platform. Competes with Townsquare Ignite for national advertiser programmatic spend with substantially greater technology scale.
- HubSpot: Leading SMB marketing and CRM platform. Competes with Townsquare Interactive in the SMB digital marketing software category but at much larger scale and broader feature set.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Townsquare social profiles
Digital presenceTownsquare financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Townsquare leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Townsquare subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
Townsquare funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Townsquare 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 Townsquare
What does Townsquare do?
Townsquare Media operates a multi-platform media and advertising company spanning 342 local radio station brands, national digital media properties (popcrush.com, TasteofCountry.com, screencrush.com), live event properties, and digital marketing services. The company sells advertising across its owned-and-operated media platforms and provides digital marketing solutions (SEO, reputation management, social media management, business listings, web presence) to local businesses through its Townsquare Interactive subsidiary and programmatic advertising through Townsquare Ignite.
Is Townsquare a public or private company?
Townsquare is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was Townsquare founded?
Townsquare was founded in 1994. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Townsquare based?
Townsquare is headquartered in Spartanburg, United States, in the North America region.
How does Townsquare make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Local Media Advertising is the primary driver. The others are national Media Advertising, townsquare Interactive Digital Marketing Services, townsquare Ignite and live Events.
Who are Townsquare's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Beasley Broadcast Group, Audacy, Emmis Communications, Saga Communications, Salem Communications, Cumulus Media and iHeartMedia. Broad incumbents are Spotify, The Trade Desk and HubSpot.
Does Townsquare have an API?
No public API is recorded for Townsquare.
What industry is Townsquare in?
Townsquare's product category is Radio Broadcasting & Digital Advertising. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPABACAC, Local Radio Station Groups (Owned & Operated/Station Chains), with a secondary code of MPAGAEAJ, Neighborhood & Community Markets/Pop-Ups (Community-Led Bazaars). Its NAICS code is 516 and its SIC code is 4832.