Backed by Mark Cuban, Zergnet is a new story aggregator with the potential to be a huge traffic generator for publishers. Using an algorithm that trades outbound traffic for inbound clicks, this startup has the chance to be a moneymaking behemoth.
Overall: 8.67
Sometimes it pays to wait, watch and learn before launching a new product. And that has certainly worked well for the San Francisco Chronicle's new Membership product. Firing on all three cylinders - brand value, UX, and most importantly, revenue potential - it is no surprise Membership lands at the top of our Ten Best list.
Overall: 9.5
While the Seattle Times Subscription Page is a product with the opportunity to generate high revenue returns, it will take a minor adjustment in strategy and an improvement in UX for it to reach its full potential.
Overall: 6.5
In the slugfest that is the news publishing business, the ever-prolific New York Times has landed another blow with Watching. Aggregating all the top news from around the globe, Watching makes a strong brand play. However, the revenue potential on this product is murky at best.
Overall:6.67
Hot off the grill, the New York Times launched its new Cooking product this week, and the results are delicious. With enough revenue potential to satisfy even the strongest of publishing appetites, this product looks to be a five-star effort.
Overall: 8.42
When it comes to maximizing revenue potential, few are doing it better than Forbes with this product. With an arsenal of sponsored content and traditional ads, coupled with content that will keep users on the page, ForbesLife looks to be a major success.
Overall: 8.83
An experiment meant to test the potential for revenue in a news aggregator service, the Washington Post's The Most has some earning power. The platform relies mainly on branded content to bring home the bacon, which isn't such a bad thing considering how well they've executed on it.
Overall: 6.83
Seeing is believing. Thanks to an image-driven news product, the Boston Globe is going visual. The Big Picture is a product that displays a prescience and forward-thinking mentality necessary to tackle the ever-changing, and increasingly social news landscape. Unfortunately, for all its innovation, the revenue on this product seems hard to find, and that hurts its rating.
Overall: 5.67
Wading into the marketplace for socially shared news, the FT is experimenting with aggregated headlines from around the web. The use of third-party sources, however, minimizes the paywall draw. Without a fix, revenue should remain low.
Overall: 6.0
The design of the L.A. Times Brand Publishing product is bold, fresh and valuable. The ghettoized sponsored content in Brand Publishing sees traffic from the site's top-navigation in over six locations. In addition, it appears in the visual browse and integration of story modules throughout the site. These content hooks drive traffic into the Brand Publishing sub-sections, which are indistinguishable from the editorial side, save for a "Sponsored Content" header.
Overall: 7.5