The Mountain Times

What The Mountain Times does

The Mountain Times is a weekly local newspaper serving the High Country region of North Carolina, with a primary footprint in Watauga County and the surrounding Appalachian mountain communities including Boone. The publication operates as part of Mountain Times Publications, a network of community newspapers that also includes the Watauga Democrat (continuously operating since 1888), Blowing Rocket, Mountain Times, Avery Journal, and Ashe Post & Times. Mountain Times Publications is owned by Adams Publishing Group, a regional media company. The publications collectively cover local government, schools, business, sports, and civic life across the High Country region.

The company operates a multi-channel content and revenue model spanning print subscriptions, digital subscriptions, advertising sales to local small and medium-sized businesses, and premium special editions such as the "High Country 250" magazine. Its underlying technology platform is the BLOX Content Management System from BLOX Digital, which supports web publishing, mobile access, e-edition delivery, and social media distribution. The publication has introduced a $1.99 single-day digital access pass as a low-friction entry point for non-subscribers and offers a dedicated mobile application for the Watauga Democrat title. Editorial coverage is produced by a small newsroom whose output is shared across the network's publications, providing operational scale relative to a standalone local newspaper.

The business model is a traditional community-media advertising-plus-subscription hybrid. Revenue is generated from individual and household print and digital subscriptions, display and classified advertising from local businesses, and sponsored premium editions. The customer base is composed of regional residents and a long tail of local SMB advertisers, with no significant exposure to enterprise or national accounts based on the available evidence.

Name

The Mountain Times

Legal name

Adams Publishing Group

Website

https://wataugademocrat.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1888

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Mountain Times is a weekly local newspaper serving the High Country region of North Carolina, operating as part of Mountain Times Publications, a multi-title community newspaper network owned by Adams Publishing Group. It generates revenue from print and digital subscriptions, local SMB advertising, and premium special editions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Boone

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Print Subscriptions: Continuous subscription with automatic renewal, delivered within newspaper distribution area via print or US Mail. Subscribers billed at selected interval with EZ Pay program available for automatic credit card charging.
2. Digital Subscriptions and Day Passes: Online subscriptions available with $1.99 day pass option for single-day digital access
3. Advertising: Local and regional advertising across multiple publications and digital platforms including classifieds and public notices
4. Premium Editions: Additional premium editions published for extra value, with charges up to $3 per premium edition delivered during subscription period

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Mountain Times is a weekly local newspaper publication serving the High Country region of northwestern North Carolina, covering local news, sports, community events, opinion, obituaries, classifieds, and public notices. It operates as part of Mountain Times Publications alongside related regional titles including the Watauga Democrat, Blowing Rocket, Avery Journal, and Ashe Post & Times. The publication is distributed via print home delivery, digital e-edition access, a website, and a mobile app, supported by print and digital subscriptions and advertising.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Mountain Times (Weekly Newspaper)
• Print Subscription (Monthly/Annual)

Quantifiable outcome

• Serving community since 1888 with continuous operation

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Adams Publishing GroupcoreOthersParent company ownership of Mountain Times Publications. Adams Publishing Group owns multiple regional newspapers and digital platforms including WataugaDemocrat.com, MountainTimes.com, BlowingRocket.com, AveryJournal.com, and other regional publications.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Lee Enterprises: Publicly traded owner of a large portfolio of U.S. community newspapers. Comparable as a diversified local-news operator with subscription, advertising, and digital monetization models serving small and mid-sized markets similar to the High Country.
• Gannett: Largest U.S. newspaper chain operating USA TODAY and hundreds of local titles. Comparable as a national community-news operator with subscription, advertising, and digital platforms targeting similar local advertiser and reader segments.

Direct peers

• Adams Publishing Group (parent titles portfolio): Parent conglomerate of Mountain Times Publications and operator of multiple regional U.S. community newspapers and digital platforms. Directly comparable as a multi-title community newspaper group running overlapping product lines, distribution models, and SMB advertising networks.
• Ogden Newspapers: Family-owned operator of community and daily newspapers across multiple states. Comparable as a privately held multi-title regional newspaper group with subscription, print, and local advertising revenue models parallel to Mountain Times Publications.

Regional players

• Asheville Citizen-Times: Regional daily and digital news outlet serving western North Carolina, including mountain communities adjacent to the High Country. Comparable as a community-rooted news brand with mixed print/digital monetization serving a similar regional mountain demographic.
• Winston-Salem Journal: Regional North Carolina daily serving a larger Piedmont market. Comparable as a state-level community news operation owned by a media group, with print, e-edition, and advertising revenue models analogous to Mountain Times Publications.
• The Roanoke Times: Regional daily newspaper covering southwestern Virginia near the North Carolina High Country border. Comparable as a multi-county regional publication operating print, digital, and community event coverage for a mid-sized mountain-adjacent market.

Others

• TownNews (BLOX Digital): Provider of the BLOX Content Management System used by Mountain Times Publications. Comparable as the technology infrastructure partner enabling digital publishing, e-edition, subscriptions, and reader engagement for community newspapers.
• Appalachian State University – Watauga Democrat coverage ecosystem: Appalachian State University is a primary content and readership driver for the Watauga Democrat and Mountain Times, given their coverage of ASU news and sports. The university functions as a key institutional stakeholder shaping the publication's audience and content.
• Boone Area Chamber of Commerce: Local business and community organization serving the Boone/Watauga County area. Comparable as a regional community-institution stakeholder sharing the same High Country audience and advertiser base as Mountain Times.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Mountain_Times
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TheWataugaDemocrat
• Facebookfacebook.com/WataugaDemocrat
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rugby-football-union

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries5 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 The Mountain Times