Yachting and Boating World

What Yachting and Boating World does

Yachting and Boating World (YBW) is a UK-based digital boating media platform that aggregates editorial content, community, boat listings, video, and utility tools for sailing and motor-boating enthusiasts. The core platform at ybw.com combines news and features, expert-advice and maintenance guides, gear reviews, travel and destination guides, an active community forum (forums.ybw.com), a boats-for-sale marketplace, a free weather and ocean forecasting tool integrated with theyr.com, and a video and event library. Editorial coverage is supplied by five sister magazine brands within the Future plc portfolio — Yachting World, Yachting Monthly, Practical Boat Owner, Motor Boat & Yachting, and Motor Boats Monthly — and digital editions of these titles are sold through a dedicated digital-editions page.

The business was launched as ybw.com in 1998, sat within TI Media Limited (formerly Time Inc. UK), and became part of Future plc following Future's 2019 acquisition of TI Media. Revenue mechanics rely primarily on advertising (sold by an in-house team including an Advertising Director, two Account Directors, an Account Manager and an Advertising Executive), magazine subscriptions and digital-edition sales routed through Magazines Direct, affiliate and sponsored-content partnerships with marine and lifestyle brands such as Garmin, Helly Hansen, Decathlon and West Marine, and B2B Marine Syndication licensing operated via Future plc. The platform operates under the UK Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) Editors' Code of Practice and serves audiences primarily in the United Kingdom with additional editorial coverage of European and North American boating markets.

Geographically, YBW is headquartered in London under the legal entity TI Media Limited. Operating geographies are listed as the United Kingdom, France, the United States and Canada alongside a global editorial footprint across travel, events and major ocean races (Volvo Ocean Race, Clipper, Fastnet, America's Cup, Cowes Week). No funding rounds, headcount figures, or standalone revenue figures are publicly disclosed, and there is no evidence of AI/ML capability, proprietary software development beyond the weather tool integration, mobile applications, or APIs.

Name

Yachting and Boating World

Legal name

TI Media Limited

Website

https://ybw.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Yachting and Boating World (YBW) is a UK digital boating media platform offering news, expert advice, forums, a boats-for-sale marketplace, video, and a free weather tool for sailing and motor-boat enthusiasts, operating within Future plc's marine magazine portfolio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Boating & Marine Digital Media

NAICS

Boat Dealers (441222)

akta.pro primary industry

Boat & Personal Watercraft (PWC) Retail (CRAMAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sailing & Rigging Retail (Sailboats, Sails, Hardware) (CRAMAIAG)

Keywords

• Boating news media
• Boat marketplace listings
• Sailing community forums
• Marine weather forecasting
• Boat magazine subscriptions

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Yachting and Boating World (YBW) operates a digital media platform at ybw.com that aggregates sailing and motor boat news, expert boat advice, gear reviews, video content, and event coverage. The platform also operates an active community forum at forums.ybw.com and a boats-for-sale marketplace, while cross-promoting sister marine magazine titles (Yachting World, Yachting Monthly, Practical Boat Owner, Motor Boat & Yachting, Motor Boats Monthly) including digital edition subscriptions. Revenue is generated primarily through advertising and magazine subscriptions.

Product overview

Yachting and Boating World (YBW) is a digital media and community platform that operates as a unified online destination for the yachting and boating community. The core product is the YBW.com website, which integrates content from multiple sister magazine brands (Yachting Monthly, Yachting World, Motor Boat & Yachting, Practical Boat Owner) into a single platform. Key offerings include news and features, community forums, boats-for-sale listings, a weather forecasting tool, video content library, boat event coverage, gear reviews, expert advice articles, and digital magazine editions. The platform serves recreational boaters, competitive sailors, and marine enthusiasts through both free content and subscription-based digital editions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Yachting World: Magazine and digital content covering competitive sailing, America's Cup, yacht tests, and sailing techniques
• Yachting Monthly
• Practical Boat Owner
• Motor Boat & Yachting
• Motor Boats Monthly

Products and services

• YBW.com website The primary digital media platform aggregating news, features, boat reviews, expert advice, gear guides, event coverage, travel content, and video content for yachting and boating enthusiasts.
• YBW Forums

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cruising World: Bluewater sailing and cruising publication with boat reviews, seamanship, and cruising destination content. Directly competes with YBW's Yachting Monthly cruising editorial for the same sailing lifestyle audience.
• Power & Motoryacht: Motor yacht and powerboat publication covering boat tests, gear, and luxury motor yachting. Directly comparable to YBW's Motor Boat & Yachting content and competes for high-end motorboat enthusiast audiences and advertisers.
• Sail Magazine: Long-established US sailing magazine and website covering racing, cruising, and boat reviews. Directly competes with YBW's Yachting World/Yachting Monthly sailing editorial content for audience and advertiser mindshare.
• Practical Sailor: Independent sailing publication providing boat reviews, gear tests, and DIY maintenance content. Closely mirrors YBW's Practical Boat Owner content offering and competes for the same hands-on boat owner audience.
• Boating Magazine: Established US boating publication covering motor boats, gear, and boating destinations. Directly competes with YBW's general boating editorial content for enthusiast audiences and marine advertising spend.
• Soundings Trade Only: Recreational boating industry news and consumer content platform covering boat reviews, ownership, and industry trends. Competes with YBW's news and editorial coverage for boating enthusiast audience attention.
• Boats Group (YachtWorld, Boats.com, Boat Trader): The dominant global boat listing platform operator running YachtWorld, Boats.com, and Boat Trader. Directly competes with YBW's boats-for-sale marketplace segment and is the most direct competitor for marine e-commerce share.
• PassageMaker: Trawler and motor cruising publication focused on long-distance powerboat voyaging. Competes with YBW's motorboat cruising editorial for the niche power-cruising enthusiast segment.

Broad incumbents

• Active Interest Media: US-based media company operating a portfolio of boating, sailing, and outdoor enthusiast brands (including Sail, Power & Motoryacht, Soundings, and Yachts International). Comparable as a multi-brand marine media portfolio operator and a direct competitor to Future plc's YBW portfolio strategy.
• Future plc: YBW's publicly-listed UK parent company (LSE: FUTR) operating a broad consumer media portfolio across technology, gaming, lifestyle, and enthusiast verticals. Relevant as YBW's corporate parent and as a portfolio operator with comparable marine media assets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ybw
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ybwtv
• Facebookfacebook.com/YachtingBoatingWorld

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 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 Yachting and Boating World