La Directa

What La Directa does

La Directa is a workers' cooperative (SCCL) headquartered in Barcelona's Sants neighborhood (Carrer Riera d'Escuder 38, Nau 1, Planta 1, 08028), operating as an independent media outlet under the tagline "Periodisme cooperatiu per la transformació social." With 38 employees, the cooperative publishes a digital news portal (directa.cat) and a monthly print magazine, both delivering investigative journalism, in-depth reporting, interviews, and opinion pieces focused on social transformation, labor rights, environmental justice, political activism, and Catalan/Valencian current affairs across Catalonia, País Valencià, Illes (Balearic Islands), Catalunya Nord (Northern Catalonia), and international coverage.

The cooperative's portfolio consists of the Directa.cat online news portal (primary product), the monthly print magazine (issue 602 as of July 2026), an online store (botiga.directa.cat) for merchandise, a subscription service, and a donation platform ("Fes una donació") accepting preset contributions of €5, €10, €20, €50, or custom amounts. The underlying technology is a standard web content management system, with web development and maintenance handled by partner Talaios Koop, a cooperative technology company. The cooperative holds no patents, has no proprietary AI/ML capabilities, and operates no mobile application.

La Directa's business model is built on reader support rather than advertising or institutional subsidies, with over 70% of its funding derived from its own resources (subscriptions and donations). This structural independence is positioned as a core differentiator. The cooperative serves general readers interested in cooperative journalism and social transformation, with content distributed through its website, print magazine, a network of physical sales points across Catalonia, the e-commerce store, and social media channels (Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube). The organization is GDPR- and CCPA-compliant and is registered with CIF F-66807058.

Name

La Directa

Legal name

LA DIRECTA SCCL

Website

https://directa.cat

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

La Directa is a Barcelona-based workers' cooperative media outlet that publishes independent cooperative journalism for social transformation through a digital news portal, monthly print magazine, and reader-supported subscription and donation model, serving Catalan-speaking audiences across Catalonia, Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Northern Catalonia, and international coverage.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Journalism

NAICS

Broadcasting and Content Providers (516)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Alternative/Independent Newsweeklies & Opinion Press (MPAJADAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO)

Keywords

• Cooperative journalism
• Investigative reporting
• Independent media
• Online news portal
• Print magazine

Headquarters

HQ city

Barcelona

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Subscriptions and reader support: La Directa depends on more than 70% of its own funds to maintain editorial independence, neither advertising nor subsidies being a structural part of the medium. The publication promotes subscriptions and donations as primary revenue sources.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

La Directa is a cooperative media outlet that produces and distributes independent journalism focused on social transformation. It publishes a digital news portal (directa.cat) and a monthly print magazine covering Catalonia, País Valencià, Illes, Catalunya Nord, and international news, with content spanning investigations, reports, interviews, and opinion pieces on labor rights, environmental justice, political activism, and cultural issues. The outlet is financed primarily through reader subscriptions and donations.

Product overview

La Directa is a cooperative media outlet structured as La Directa SCCL that operates a multi-platform journalism offering. The core portfolio consists of the Directa.cat digital news portal (the primary product delivering investigative and cooperative journalism) complemented by the monthly print Directa magazine, with supporting revenue products including subscription services and a donation platform for reader support, plus an online store for merchandise. The organization depends on own resources for over 70% of its funding, maintaining editorial independence from advertising and subsidies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Directa.cat Online News Portal Digital news portal providing cooperative journalism focused on social transformation, covering Catalonia, Valencia, Balearic Islands, Northern Catalonia, and international news with sections including Actualitat, Reportatge, Investigació, Entrevista, and Opinió. Targeted at general readers in Catalan-speaking regions.
• Directa Print Magazine Monthly print publication featuring sections such as Sota Focus, Sobiranies, L'entrevista, Internacional, Ideari, and Som cooperativa, distributed through subscription and physical sales points across Catalonia.
• Online Subscription (Subscriu-t'hi) Subscription service allowing readers to financially support the cooperative media and access independent journalism, with over 70% of funding coming from own resources to maintain editorial independence.
• Donation Platform (Fes una donació) Crowdfunding/donation mechanism allowing readers to contribute preset amounts (€5, €10, €20, €50) or custom amounts to support the cooperative's independent journalism and editorial independence.
• Online Store (Botiga en línia) E-commerce platform for purchasing merchandise and promotional items related to the cooperative media outlet, available to readers and supporters.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• De Correspondent: Dutch cooperative journalism platform founded on a reader-funded model with no advertising, sharing La Directa's ad-free cooperative structure and member-supported revenue approach.
• Nació Digital: Catalan-language digital news outlet covering Catalonia's news, politics, and culture, competing directly with La Directa for Catalan-speaking readers in the same geographic market.
• El Diario.es: Spanish independent digital news outlet with a strong progressive editorial line and a reader-supported membership model, comparable to La Directa's funding and editorial positioning.
• Diagonal: Spanish cooperative periodical focused on social movements, labor, and critical journalism, directly comparable to La Directa's editorial mission and cooperative structure.
• La Marea: Spanish independent cooperative magazine with print and digital editions covering social, political, and environmental issues, sharing La Directa's cooperative ownership and reader-funded approach.
• Crític: Catalan independent digital media outlet covering politics, culture, and social issues with a print edition, sharing La Directa's Catalan-language audience and progressive editorial positioning.
• VilaWeb: Long-running Catalan-language independent digital news outlet covering current affairs and politics, comparable to La Directa in language, geography, and independent editorial positioning.
• El Salto: Spanish cooperative digital magazine covering politics, society, culture, and ecology, operating on a similar reader-supported model with a strong editorial independence stance analogous to La Directa's cooperative structure.

Broad incumbents

• The Guardian: Major international news outlet owned by a trust with strong reader-supported funding and independent editorial positioning, representing a scaled analogue of La Directa's reader-funded model.
• ProPublica: US-based independent investigative journalism outlet funded primarily through donations and grants, sharing La Directa's ad-free, mission-driven journalism model at a much larger scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/La_Directa
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/la-directa

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 La Directa