What News UK does

News UK is the wholly-owned UK and Ireland subsidiary of News Corp (NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA), operating a diversified multi-platform media business built around four newsbrands — The Sun, The Times, The Sunday Times and TLS — and four broadcast radio stations: talkSPORT, Talk, Times Radio and Virgin Radio UK, plus Irish brand Onic. The portfolio reaches approximately 40 million people per month across print, digital, social video, podcasts and broadcast, with The Sun alone reaching 24.3 million on-platform and over 50 million off-platform, and The Times and Sunday Times combining for 12.5 million monthly readers and 676,000 paying digital subscribers. The Times traces its heritage to 1785, making it one of the oldest continuously published newsbrands globally.

Underlying the consumer brands is an advertising technology stack centred on Octave (a premium audio-visual monetisation platform reaching 15.5 million monthly listeners), the Nucleus first-party data platform, Ozone programmatic infrastructure and Switch Digital, augmented by AI-driven products Octave AI (generative audio creative with AudioStack) and Times ExplorAItion (synthetic audience planning with Electric Twin). Supporting services include Newsprinters (print manufacturing), News Licensing (archive licensing), News Studios (production facilities) and The Fifth Group (until its 2025 divestiture to Brave Bison).

News UK generates revenue through three primary streams: consumer subscriptions (digital and print), advertising across owned media (display, video, podcast, native, programmatic audio), and B2B services including wholesale distribution (via the 10-year Smiths News contract from July 2027, projected to add £125 million annually), retail allocation (Frontline Group), and content licensing. The commercial model is a hybrid of direct-to-consumer subscriptions, enterprise field sales to blue-chip advertisers (Sky, bet365, Hawkstone, M&S), and channel partnerships distributing inventory through AdsWizz, Audiomack, Sonos and others. Press Gazette ranks News UK among the UK's top 50 news media companies with disclosed revenue of approximately £646 million (FY2026), down 11.8% year-on-year — the steepest decline among major UK news publishers.

Name

News UK

Legal name

News UK & Ireland Limited

Website

http://news.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

News UK is the wholly-owned UK and Irish subsidiary of News Corp, operating heritage newsbrands (The Sun, The Times, The Sunday Times), commercial radio (talkSPORT, Times Radio, Virgin Radio UK, Talk) and an AI-powered advertising technology stack (Octave, Nucleus, Octave AI) reaching approximately 40 million consumers monthly and generating around £646 million in annual revenue.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Newspaper Publishing and Broadcasting

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper Publishers (51311), Radio Broadcasting Stations (51611), Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

National & General-Interest Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Consumer News & Digital Newsrooms (Web/App-First) (MPAJADAD), Talk/News/Sports Radio Networks & Syndication (MPAIAEAG), News/Talk Radio Networks (MPABABAD)

Keywords

• Newspaper publishing
• Radio broadcasting
• Digital advertising
• News subscriptions
• Media content

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Digital and print subscriptions for The Times, The Sunday Times, and other titles. The Times and Sunday Times have 676k digital subscribers and reach 12.5 million people per month.
2. Advertising Revenue: Digital and print advertising across portfolio including The Sun (24.3m monthly reach), Times Media, and talkSPORT. Includes video, display, podcast, and native advertising formats.
3. Distribution Services: Wholesale distribution revenue through partnerships with Smiths News for newspapers and magazines, simplifying supply chain and reducing structural costs.
4. Octave Audio-Visual Advertising Platform: Premium programmatic audio and video advertising platform offering targeted campaigns to 15.5 million monthly listeners through owned brands and third-party inventory partners.
5. Data Monetisation: Monetisation of first-party audience data through Nucleus platform enabling precise advertising targeting and synthetic audience tools.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

News UK is a multi-platform media company that publishes national newspapers (The Sun, The Times, The Sunday Times, TLS, Onic) and operates commercial radio stations (talkSPORT, Talk, Times Radio, Virgin Radio UK). It sells digital and print subscriptions to consumers and provides integrated advertising solutions (Octave, Nucleus, Ozone) to brands and agencies across digital, print, audio, and video inventory. Supporting services include print production (Newsprinters), content licensing (News Licensing), and broadcast production (News Studios).

Product overview

News UK operates as a diversified media conglomerate with a multi-platform portfolio of newsbrands, broadcast radio stations, and advertising technology products. The core newsbrand portfolio includes The Sun, The Times, The Sunday Times, TLS, and Onic across print and digital formats. Broadcast operations span talkSPORT (sports radio), Talk (talk radio), Times Radio, and Virgin Radio UK. The advertising technology stack centers on Octave (audio-visual advertising platform), Nucleus (first-party data platform), Times ExplorAItion (synthetic audience planning), Octave AI (automated audio ad creation), and Ozone (programmatic advertising). Supporting services include News Studios (production), Newsprinters (print/distribution), News Licensing (archive licensing), Switch Digital (digital ad services), and retail/wholesale distribution partnerships with Smiths News and Frontline Group. The product architecture combines owned media brands with data platforms and AI-powered tools to deliver targeted advertising solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Sun: Britain's most popular newsbrand, reaching 24.3 million people monthly across digital and print.
• The Times
• The Sunday Times
• TLS (Times Literary Supplement)
• talkSPORT
• Talk
• Times Radio
• Virgin Radio UK
• Octave
• Nucleus
• Onic

Products and services

• The Sun Britain's most popular newsbrand providing investigative journalism, agenda-setting campaigns, and celebrity content across print, digital, and video platforms including Sun Originals Video.
• The Times Britain's most trusted newsbrand providing authoritative journalism across digital, print, podcasts, and Times Radio, with 676,000 digital subscribers and 12.5 million monthly reach.
• The Sunday Times Sunday newspaper providing agenda-setting journalism with 676,000 digital subscribers, reaching 12.5 million people monthly across multiple platforms.
• TLS (Times Literary Supplement)

Quantifiable outcome

• Times doubled conversions on Reddit with Max campaigns - twofold increase in conversion rate and 26% increase in click-through rate
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration19 records

AI capability16 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor, flagship and strategic.

• Smiths NewscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 17 June 2026News UK selected Smiths News as exclusive national wholesale distribution partner for newspapers and magazines from July 2027. The new ten-year contract simplifies News UK's wholesale process, removes structural costs from supply chain, and creates a more efficient model to support retailers and consumers. Smiths News has frozen delivery service charge for retail customers for the life of the contract.
• AudiomackcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 15 June 2026Audiomack signed exclusive deal for Octave to represent its advertising inventory via AdsWizz, reaching its engaged Gen Z audience as part of Octave's strategic programme to build targeted network of high-quality third-party audio inventory.
• SonoscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 15 June 2026Sonos premium smart speaker advertising inventory added to Octave's portfolio via AdsWizz, helping grow Octave's reach amongst hard-to-target ABC1 audience segment.
• Boom RadiominorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 15 June 2026Boom Radio family of stations streaming inventory represented as part of Octave's portfolio, reaching highly engaged 55+ audience demographic.
• CountryLine RadiominorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 15 June 2026CountryLine Radio digital inventory represented as part of Octave's portfolio, reaching loyal audience across DAB, apps, and selected streaming partners as UK's dedicated country music station.
• bet365flagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 12 June 2026bet365 became talkSPORT's headline bookmaker partner for World Cup 2026 coverage. Sponsorship of 'Road to the Final' pre-tournament show plus live match broadcasts, dedicated World Cup shows, digital content, social channels and on-air promotions.
• FOX SportsflagshipChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 12 June 2026Distribution partnership for talkSPORT's The S* Word show for North American audiences. Content distributed via YouTube, FOXSports.com, SiriusXM FC, TuneIn and Apple Podcasts as part of World Cup 2026 coverage.
• Frontline GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 5 June 2026News UK partnered with print distribution specialist Frontline Group to handle national retail distribution for The Sun, The Times, The Sunday Times and TLS. Partnership leverages Frontline's data-led allocation capabilities and EPOS insights to reduce unsold copies and improve distribution efficiency.
• HawkstoneflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 May 2026Hawkstone confirmed as headline partner for The Sun's new World Cup social video series 'Proper Football Daily'. Collaboration encompasses show sponsorship, collaborative content creation, brand and product integration across The Sun's social media channels.
• SkyflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 May 2026Sky signed major integrated World Cup advertising deal for Sky Glass product across The Sun, Times Media and talkSPORT. Includes original video content, podcast integrations, print sponsorship, digital display. Multi-brand campaign with innovative video, digital, print and podcast executions.
• TNT SportscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 May 2026TNT Sports is exclusive live broadcast partner of MotoGP in UK, providing expert commentary team (Suzi Perry, Gav Emmett, Neil Hodgson, Michael Laverty, Sylvain Guintoli) for talkSPORT's summer MotoGP coverage.
• Electric TwinstrategicTechnology or Integration · 29 April 2026News UK developed Times ExplorAItion, an AI-powered synthetic audience tool, in partnership with Electric Twin. Integrated into News UK's Nucleus data platform, it allows advertisers to test and optimize campaigns against virtual audience models using first-party and third-party data signals.
• The Media TruststrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 February 2026News UK participates in The Media Trust's inaugural Product Advisory Council alongside Microsoft, Amazon, BBC, Criteo, The Trade Desk, Disney and others. Focus on coordinated action against digital threats including malvertising, cloaked creatives, and ad fraud.
• AudioStackstrategicTechnology or Integration · 23 October 2025News UK launched Octave AI in partnership with AudioStack. The automated audio advertising creation and optimisation platform uses AI to generate, deliver, and optimise broadcast-ready radio and podcast campaigns in minutes with Dynamic Creative Optimisation capabilities.
• Marks & Spencer (M&S)flagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 23 October 2025M&S signed as launch partner for Octave AI platform. Using the technology through WPP Media's Mindshare agency to promote new store opening in Cabot Circus, Bristol with location-specific creatives targeting precise audiences.
• WPP Media / MindshareflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 23 October 2025WPP Media's Mindshare agency signed as launch partner for Octave AI platform, providing strategic partnership for automated audio advertising creation and optimisation serving clients across the platform.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• ITV plc: ITV is a UK commercial broadcaster and major advertising platform (ITV1, ITVX, ITV Studios) that competes with News UK's video and broadcasting properties for advertising budgets and sports rights (including adjacent World Cup coverage). Broader incumbent in UK commercial media.
• Spotify: Spotify is a global audio streaming and podcast platform that competes with talkSPORT, Times Radio, and Virgin Radio UK for podcast audiences and audio advertising spend. Spotify also distributes News UK's podcast content, making it both a partner and competitor in audio monetisation.
• News Corp Australia / News Corp: News Corp is the global parent of News UK and the broader diversified media group (Dow Jones, HarperCollins, Foxtel, REA Group). While the parent, it is the most relevant comparable for capital structure, strategic positioning, and overall media conglomerate benchmarking at the group level.
• BBC: BBC is the UK's dominant public broadcaster (BBC One, BBC Radio, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds) and competes with News UK for audiences and advertising share in adjacent spaces. News UK participates in BBC-adjacent industry initiatives (The Media Trust Product Advisory Council) and competes for premium content talent.

Direct peers

• DMGT (Daily Mail and General Trust): DMGT owns the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, MailOnline, Metro, and i newspaper — directly competing with News UK's mid-market and quality newsbrand portfolio. The two companies compete head-to-head for UK newspaper readers and advertising budgets.
• Reach plc: Reach plc is the UK's largest newspaper publisher (Daily Mirror, Daily Express, Daily Star, OK!, regional titles) and the closest direct competitor to News UK's newspaper portfolio, particularly The Sun and The Times. Both operate in UK national and regional news publishing with similar print and digital subscription models.
• Bauer Media: Bauer Media Audio is the UK's second-largest commercial radio operator (Absolute Radio, Kiss, Magic, Hits Radio) and a direct competitor to News UK's radio portfolio. Both compete for listeners, advertising revenue, and podcast audiences in UK commercial radio.
• Guardian Media Group: Guardian Media Group publishes The Guardian and The Observer, competing directly with The Times and The Sunday Times for quality news readership, digital subscriptions, and advertising. Both operate reader-funded digital subscription models in the UK national press.
• Global Media (Global): Global operates the UK's largest commercial radio portfolio (Capital, Heart, Classic FM, LBC, Smooth, Radio X) and is the direct competitor to News UK's talkSPORT, Talk, Times Radio, and Virgin Radio UK in UK commercial broadcasting and audio advertising.

Others

• The Trade Desk: The Trade Desk is a leading independent demand-side programmatic advertising platform referenced as a media buying partner in News UK's advertising ecosystem. Comparable as an ad tech infrastructure layer that News UK's Nucleus, Octave, and Ozone platforms both integrate with and compete against for advertiser spend.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/newsuk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/news-uk
• Facebookfacebook.com/news-uk-868301096589427

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Subsidiaries14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about News UK