Independent Media today reports a record-breaking financial year, with annual revenue surpassing the £50m mark for the first time.
In a landmark set of results for the media group, revenue in the financial year ending December 2024 increased by 15% to £53.2m, representing the eighth consecutive year of growth and profit for The Independent since going fully digital.
Led by Christian Broughton in his first full year as Chief Executive, the company achieved significant growth in the core business. It also expanded by taking control of BuzzFeed, HuffPost, Tasty and Seasoned in the UK and Ireland in a multi-year licensing deal, taking the brands into immediate growth and profit, with Independent Media becoming the biggest publisher network for Gen Z and millennial audiences in the country.
Passing a milestone in its progress as a digital pioneer, the company’s revenue matched the income of the newspapers in 2015, their last full year of print. This included revenue from all three national titles run by Independent Print Limited at the time: The Independent, The Independent on Sunday and The i Paper. Last year’s profit from digital was almost the same as the loss that the three newspapers made that year.
The continued growth has been driven by the successful execution of a business strategy focused on key growth drivers. Expansion in the US saw revenue grow 50% YoY to £12.7m, as audiences increasingly discovered a brand that stands apart from partisan coverage. Independent TV saw 1 billion videos viewed on The Independent’s own website, including acclaimed original documentaries. In eCommerce, IndyBest reviews led to 1 million purchases.
Eight years of revenue growth and sustained profit have enabled The Independent to invest in its journalism under the editorship of Geordie Greig. He marked his second year in charge with an agenda-changing story which forced the Government to reverse its policy on allowing an Afghan pilot, and others who fought alongside British troops, to be given the sanctuary they had been promised.
The title also launched its Brick by Brick campaign, which resulted in The Independent finding a plot, builders, and funds to construct two houses for victims of domestic abuse. The Queen, the Prime Minister and the whole of the Cabinet joined readers to fund a unique campaign with a permanent legacy.
In the UK, The Independent became the largest commercial digital news website for the first time, while monthly visitors in the US grew by 21% year-on-year to 30 million, serving more page views than any other British digital newspaper.
As a result, the business has also been able to invest heavily in both AI and in Independent Studio, two new initiatives that are growing fast in 2025, putting Independent Media firmly on track to record further growth in the current financial year.
Christian Broughton, Chief Executive of Independent Digital News Media, added: “These remarkable commercial and editorial results demonstrate the underlying strength and agility of our business model. We are putting our profits to good use again, making significant investments in AI, which has a pivotal role to play in the two launches that are leading our next leap forward: Independent Studio (talent-led media) and Bulletin, our news service designed to deliver truth and trust to those of us with busy lives.
“It’s that combination of a forward-looking strategy, executed successfully alongside the continued investment in our award-winning journalism, which drives our success.”
John Paton, Chairman of Independent Digital News Media, said: “Our laser focus on our key strategic pillars has enabled us to achieve this extraordinary, double-digit revenue growth. This kind of robust financial performance makes The Independent a successful outlier in an otherwise challenging market for news brands. We are particularly pleased with our growth in the US, which now makes up 25% of our revenue.”
Operational highlights included:
