Arianna Huffington: ‘Australia is fertile ground for our business model’
The Australian edition of the Huffington Post has been pushed back again with founder Arianna Huffington telling Mumbrella it will “definitely” launch in the second quarter of 2015, although a deal with a local partner has still not been finalised.
Last month HuffPo’s general manager overseeing international growth Koda Wang said the publication, one of the most popular English language news sites in the world, would launch Down Under in the first quarter of 2015.
But speaking to Mumbrella yesterday Huffington said it would be here “by your autumn”, and will be led by Australian editors and content creators, adding she saw the local market as “very fertile ground” for the commercial model of the publication.
Asked why the Australian launch, which was first mooted in 2011, has taken so long, she said: “I think what happened is for some reason, because we can only do so many launches at once, other launches were finalised earlier and other launches took precedence. It wasn’t planned to go that way but it did because of all the other launches that got to the top of our calendar.”
Alex, did you ask her why she does not pay writers for their contributions?
This character does not value the job of being a writer as no one gets paid on her site.
You can not live on ‘exposure’ and ‘reputation’ alone. Last time I checked, my byline did not pay the bills. Being paid for my work does.
I hope any attempts to infiltrate the local market is met with a boycott. This kind of business model should not be supported.
So Adriana has a wonderful recipe. Pay contributors nothing. But she doesn’t work for nothing and has made millions out of the Huffington Post. I find it difficult to understand how these people can build digital companies based upon such an amoral commercial model. I suppose too she will set up an Irish company and book all revenue as offshore so no tax is paid in Australia. Wow what a fantastic business model!
So you have 95m Unique Visitors a month. Any idea how many people that is in a month?
@a writer. Rather than whinge and ask for boycotts, look at the landscape and adopt. Many previously flourishing career paths are going to be history. I have seen great writers, journo’s, musicians, composers adapt, make changes and flourish. Publish your work yourself, blog, collaborate. OR whinge and ask for boycotts… Its 2014 traditional models have had their day. I feel for you, however also feel that being needy is not leading and leading might find new avenues for you.
Well, if the new world order is journalists writing for free then that’s hardly a forward move is it? Adapt or perish, sure. So journalism is a professional qualification that is worth nothing? You can shove that. Soon our ABC will be like a leaking lifeboat in a seething ocean of branded content. Shut up George Orwell, we all know what you wrote.
Geez, that pic of Arianna is photoshopped to the max!
Yeah Betty. I had to pull an all-nighter to get it done!