Spin Master

The Kitchn Launches Paid Membership and Print Magazine

The Kitchn, part of the Apartment Therapy Media portfolio, launched a paid membership tier that includes a new quarterly print magazine plus members-only digital recipes, personalized recommendations, an AI-powered cooking assistant and an ad-free Cook Mode. The debut issue, “What’s for Dinner?”, will appear on newsstands at Target, Walmart and Barnes & Noble on July 31 with an initial print run of about 80,000 copies. The membership was developed in-house, editorially led by Kitchn Editor-in-Chief Lindsay Funston, costs $40 annually at launch (no monthly option) and does not put existing free content behind a paywall—preserving the publisher’s programmatic ad business, which the company says has seen RPM rise 20% year over year. Company president Riva Syrop framed the move as incremental diversification rather than a rescue of the business.

Perion Closes Content IQ Amid Strategic Shift

Perion shut down Content IQ, its Made-for-Advertising MFA network, on May 12, 2024 following investigations by Sincera and AdExchanger. The move triggered immediate layoffs of Content IQ staff, including UK-based writers, and the removal of Content IQ’s LinkedIn presence and MFA sites. Perion had acquired Content IQ in 2020 for just over $73 million. The shutdown aligns with a May 8, 2024 rebrand and strategic shift toward technologies for advertisers, with Perion stating the Content IQ legacy activities are not part of its future focus—a shift that began in 2023. Several MFA sites under Content IQ were taken offline, while some subdomains remain active (e.g., magazine.jpost.com) with monetization via Samyo News under Cortex Media Group and Viewbix. Industry context notes MFA spending around $13 billion annually across roughly 44,000 sites, per ANA.

Blackriver: Dominating the Fingerskateboard Scene from Germany

Blackriver is a small German manufacturer of high-end fingerskateboards and handcrafted mini-ramps founded in 1999 by Martin Ehrenberger in Schwarzenbach an der Saale. Ehrenberger scaled the business by building a community through contests, store installations and tours (first contest in 2001, Germany tour in 2003). The company runs an in-house mini‑manufactory producing roughly 100 boards per day and outsources rough builds to partner workshops; premium boards can cost over €100. About 30% of sales come via skate shops while the majority is sold through Blackriver’s own online shop. Despite community credibility, mainstream skate brands and many skate retailers remain hesitant to associate with fingerskateboarding. Blackriver plans a 25‑year anniversary and a return to a live world championship event.