Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting

What Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting does

The Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting (STAR) is a non-profit professional membership organization founded in 1990 and headquartered in Jupiter, Florida, serving the United States court reporting industry. The organization's stated mission is to be "the leading professional organization in the speech-to-text industry," and it supports more than 500 members spanning all court reporting capture methods — stenography, voice writing, and digital reporting — as well as adjacent roles including legal transcriptionists, videographers, scopists, proofreaders, and editors, plus a pipeline of court reporting students. STAR's portfolio of products is centered on an annual individual membership (priced at $150/year for most professional categories, with free tiers for students and retired members), supplemented by the STAR In Focus podcast, bi-monthly educational webinars, fireside chat panel discussions, and two recurring conferences — the in-person Unity Summit (jointly hosted with AAERT) and the virtual STARTECH event held each October. Revenue is generated primarily through recurring membership dues and conference registrations, augmented by a tiered sponsorship program that anchors Platinum relationships with Stenograph, Esquire Solutions, and The Varallo Group.

STAR is governed by a volunteer board of practicing court reporters and managed operationally by The Varallo Group LLC under an executive services arrangement, with George Catuogno serving as Executive Director. The organization differentiates itself from method-specific associations by explicitly championing all capture modalities, positioning itself as a unifying industry voice rather than a single-discipline trade body. In April 2026, STAR and AAERT both voted unanimously to pursue a merger forming CAPTUR (The Council for the Advancement of Professionals, Technology, and Unbiased Reporting), with formal culmination scheduled at the 2026 Unity Summit on May 14-17, 2026, in Nashville, Tennessee.

Name

Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting

Legal name

Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting

Website

https://staronline.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

STAR is a non-profit professional membership organization serving 500+ U.S. court reporting professionals across stenography, voice writing, and digital reporting through annual memberships, educational podcasts and webinars, and two annual conferences.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association / Membership Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAHACAA

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies)

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Professional Conference Organizers (PCOs) & Meeting Planners

SECONDARYTHAHAMAH

Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Corporate Meetings & Summits

Keywords

• Professional membership association
• Court reporting education
• Speech-to-text industry
• Stenography professional development
• Legal transcription networking

Headquarters

HQ city

Worcester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: STAR generates revenue primarily through annual membership dues. Membership categories include Industry Professional ($150/year), Agency Management ($150/year), Educator ($150/year), First Year Professional ($150/year), Student (FREE), and Retired (FREE).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

STAR (Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting) is a not-for-profit professional membership organization that serves court reporting professionals, students, agency owners, and support staff (videographers, scopists, proofreaders, editors) across all capture methods including stenography, voice writing, and digital reporting. Its core offering is annual individual membership ($150/year) that delivers networking, continuing education, technology and security resources, and product discounts, supplemented by member-only educational programs such as the Unity Summit conference, STARTECH virtual conference, STAR In Focus podcast, webinars, and fireside chats.

Product overview

STAR operates as a professional membership organization for court reporting professionals, offering a unified portfolio of membership services and educational programs. The core offering is the STAR Membership program, which provides access to networking, educational opportunities, technology resources, and product discounts. This is complemented by STAR In Focus Podcast (industry interviews and discussions), STAR Webinars (continuing education), Fireside Chat (panel discussions), and two major annual conferences: Unity Summit (in-person event with AAERT) and STARTECH (virtual conference). These products collectively serve court reporting professionals including stenographers, digital reporters, voice writers, legal transcribers, videographers, scopists, proofreaders, and students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• STAR In Focus Podcast: A podcast series building a bridge to the future of court reporting, featuring industry leaders discussing valuable and relevant industry topics.
• STARTECH

Products and services

• STAR Membership Annual individual membership ($150/year for Industry Professional, Agency Management, Educator, and First Year Professional tiers; free for Students and Retired tiers) that provides court reporting professionals with networking, continuing education, technology and security resources, and member-only product discounts.
• Unity Summit Conference Annual four-day in-person conference co-hosted with AAERT (pricing tiers range from $195 student early-bird to $995 non-member on-site), featuring educational sessions, networking events, CEU opportunities, and technology exhibitions for court reporting professionals.
• STARTECH Virtual Conference Annual two-day virtual conference held in October for members, featuring industry professional sessions, agency presentations, skill improvement training, and student-specific Q&A with STAR board members.
• STAR Membership Dues Recurring annual subscription fee structure that funds the organization's programs, providing membership benefits across all capture methods and member categories.

Named customers1 record

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

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• AAERT (American Association of Electronic Reporters and Transcribers)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 April 2026AAERT and STAR have both voted unanimously to pursue a merger that would create CAPTUR, The Council for the Advancement of Professionals, Technology, and Unbiased Reporting. The combined organization would unite all professionals who create, support, and protect the legal record. The merger culminates at the 2026 Unity Summit scheduled for May 14-17, 2026, in Nashville, Tennessee.
• StenographflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Provides technology products and services to the court reporting industry.
• Esquire SolutionsflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Provides litigation support services to the legal industry.
• The Varallo GroupflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Management services organization for court reporting firms nationwide. Also serves as the management company for STAR.
• U.S. Legal SupportcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGold sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Provides legal support services including court reporting.
• VeritextcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGold sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Court reporting and litigation support firm.
• EclipsecoreTechnology or IntegrationGold sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Provides CAT (Computer-Aided Transcription) software for court reporters.
• For the RecordminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSilver sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Industry publication.
• LexitasminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSilver sponsor of Unity Summit 2025. Legal services provider.
• Project StenocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExhibitor at Unity Summit 2025. Non-profit organization promoting the stenographic court reporting/captioning profession through community outreach and student pipeline development. STAR is a long-time supporter of Project Steno.
• Cuyahoga Community CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExhibitor at Unity Summit 2025. Educational institution with Captioning and Court Reporting program.
• The Court Reporting AcademyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExhibitor at Unity Summit 2025. Court reporting education institution.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• The Court Reporting Academy: An online and hybrid court reporting education institution that trains new stenographic reporters. Adjacent to STAR as an education-focused participant in the same professional ecosystem, exhibiting at Unity Summit and supplying students who may become STAR members.

Others

• Stenograph: A leading manufacturer of stenographic machines and CAT software for court reporters, and a flagship platinum sponsor of Unity Summit. Comparable to STAR only as an ecosystem participant — Stenograph is a vendor, not a peer association, but the close working relationship through sponsorship makes it a relevant counterpart in the same professional network.
• Project Steno: A non-profit dedicated to growing the stenographic court reporting pipeline through outreach, scholarships, and student support. Comparable to STAR as an adjacent mission-driven organization in the same ecosystem — Project Steno feeds future practitioners into STAR's member base.

Regional players

• Illinois Court Reporters Association: A state-level professional association for Illinois court reporters offering education, networking, and legislative advocacy. Comparable to STAR as a peer professional body, though operating regionally rather than nationally and competing for some of the same practitioner engagement.
• California Court Reporters Association: A state-level professional association for California Certified Shorthand Reporters, providing continuing education, legislative advocacy, and member networking. A relevant peer because it serves a portion of the same professional community STAR targets, albeit at the state level.

Direct peers

• National Verbatim Reporters Association (NVRA): A national professional association serving voice writers and verbatim reporters in the legal and CART spaces. NVRA is a direct peer to STAR for the voice writing segment of court reporting, providing certification, advocacy, and member services to an overlapping professional audience.
• National Court Reporters Association (NCRA): The largest US professional association for court reporters and captioners, offering certification, continuing education, advocacy, and an annual convention. Directly comparable to STAR as a competing cross-method membership body serving the same profession, though NCRA has historically been larger and more stenography-centric.
• American Association of Electronic Reporters and Transcribers (AAERT): AAERT is a direct peer professional association representing electronic and digital court reporters, and is currently merging with STAR to form CAPTUR. The two organizations share overlapping but distinct member bases and have jointly run the Unity Summit, making AAERT the most directly comparable peer to STAR.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@STARInFocusPodcast
• Facebookfacebook.com/SocietyForTechnologicalAdvancementOfReporting
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/society-for-the-technological-advancement-of-reporting
• Instagraminstagram.com/STAR.reporting
• Xx.com/starreporting

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting