About The Outline
The Outline is a Media & Entertainment company based in New York (United States) founded in 2015, and was acquired by Bustle.company in April 2019. Digital news on politics, business, culture, and future is published. It operates on a Advertising Model model. The Outline has raised $10.15 million across 2 funding rounds from investors including Tegna, Boat Rocker Media and RRE Ventures. Its website theoutline.com draws about 137 thousand monthly visits. The Outline offers products and services including Online Articles. Its focus areas include Media, Digital Media and Online Publishing. Its legal entity is INDEPENDENT MEDIA CORP. Its competitors include BuzzFeed, Vix and Digg; 3 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Content is created and published by The Outline, focusing on diverse topics such as culture, power, and future trends. Articles and features are offered across various themes including societal issues, personal stories, and technological advancements. The platform is designed to engage readers with thought-provoking narratives and insights into contemporary issues.
- Headquarters New York, United States
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsMedia & Entertainment
- Email••••••••
- Website theoutline.com
- Social X Facebook
- Acquired by Bustle.company (Apr 2019)
- Legal Name Independent Media Corp.
- Total Equity Funding$10.15M (USD)
in 2 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$5.15M (USD), Series A
May 2018
- InvestorsTegna
& 6 more
- Acquired byBustle.company
(Apr 2019)
Products & Services of The Outline
The Outline offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, including Online Articles.
Digital content is provided on culture and power.
Funding Insights of The Outline
The Outline has successfully raised a total of $10.15M across 2 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series A round of $5.15 million completed in May 2018. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $10.15M
- Total Rounds 2
- Last Round Series A — $5.15M
- First Round $5M
(Aug 2016)
- Investors Count 6
All 2 funding rounds of The Outline with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2018 | $5.15M | Series A | – | RRE Ventures | |
| Aug 2016 | $5M | Series A | – | – |
7 investors in total: 7 institutional.
Investors in The Outline
The Outline has secured backing from 7 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Tegna, Boat Rocker Media and RRE Ventures.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
VC firm investing in seed and early stage companies in the US | rre.com | New York, United States | ||
Venture capital investment firm based out of USA | redseaventures.com | New York, United States | ||
Tech focused VC firm investing in early-stage startups in the US | advancitcapital.com | New York, United States | ||
Seed-stage tech startups are invested in by NextView Ventures. | nextview.vc | Boston, United States | ||
Digital media broadcasting and TV services are operated by Tegna. | 1926 | tegna.com | Mclean, United States | |
Creates, produces, & distributes premium content | 2014 | boatrocker.com | Toronto, Canada | |
Cultural impact is driven through premium content and events by BDG. | bustle.company | New York, United States |
Investor details for The Outline
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
- Investor portfolios
- Co-investor network
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
People of The Outline
1 people are tracked at The Outline (1 in team).
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Brandy Jensen | Power Editor | Team |
Complete people profiles for The Outline
Full employee and board profiles, team structure, tenure and professional contact details require an active premium plan.
- Full employee list
- Team structure
- Board tenure
- Professional contacts
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Timeline of The Outline
4 dated milestones of The Outline across 4 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded The Outline is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $5.0M.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series A, of $5.2M.
- Exit Acquired by Bustle.company.
Competitors of The Outline
The Outline has 3 listed competitors in our database, 3 of them funded. They include BuzzFeed, Vix and Digg.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| buzzfeed.com | 2006 | New York, United States | $496.76M | 871 | Viral news and multimedia content are delivered online. | |
| vix.com | 2005 | Miami, United States | $109.03M | Social news content is delivered in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. | ||
| digg.com | 2004 | New York, United States | $49M | A human-first community platform for connection and discovery is offered. |
Detailed competitors of The Outline
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
- Full competitor set
- Operating metrics
- Benchmarks
- Competitive positioning
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Web traffic of The Outline
The website of The Outline (theoutline.com) receives about 136.6K visits a month.
- Monthly visits136.6K
▲ 29.7% vs previous month
Websites whose visitors overlap most with The Outline. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| nytimes.com | 100% | 695.1M | #71 | View details | |
dilbertblog.typepad.com | dilbertblog.typepad.com | 94% | – | ||
washingtonmonthly.com | washingtonmonthly.com | 92% | #223,353 | – | |
thecanary.co | thecanary.co | 89% | #100,740 | – | |
presspubs.com | presspubs.com | 89% | #1,073,063 | – | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 35 similar websites and full traffic analytics for The Outline
The complete similar-websites list, audience overlap and engagement analytics require an active premium plan.
- 35 similar websites
- Audience overlap
- Engagement analytics
- Traffic by brand
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Top companies in DTC Media Innovators
3 companies that operate in the same segment as The Outline (DTC Media Innovators) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Multi-category news is delivered through an app-based platform. | 2016 | Arlington, Virginia, United States | USD 30 M | 356 | ||
Online platform publishing content focusing on investment | 2011 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | USD 60.4 M | |||
Subscription-based sports media is delivered to local premium audiences. | 2016 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | USD 134.42 M |
Unlock complete access to The Company Check
Get unrestricted viewing across everything we track — from companies and brands to investors, funding rounds, acquisitions, financials, and more.
- Unlimited viewing on all profiles Companies, investors, financials, funding, acquisitions & directors
- Full access to every database India & global coverage, advanced filters and rich profile details
- Always-on access from your team account Single premium plan for everything you see on the portal
Related news about The Outline
Complete news archive for The Outline
Full article history, source details, and older brand coverage require an active premium plan.
- Full article archive
- Source and publication date
- Older coverage
- Brand-specific news history
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Frequently Asked Questions about The Outline
The Outline was founded in 2015 and raised its 1st funding round 1 year after it was founded.
The Outline is headquartered in New York, United States. It is registered at New York, New York, United States.
The Outline is a funded company, having raised a total of $10.15M across 2 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Series A of $5M, raised on Aug 2016.
Content is created and published by The Outline, focusing on diverse topics such as culture, power, and future trends. Articles and features are offered across various themes including societal issues, personal stories, and technological advancements. The platform is designed to engage readers with thought-provoking narratives and insights into contemporary issues.
The Outline offers Online Articles.
The Outline has 7 investors. Key investors include Tegna, Boat Rocker Media, RRE Ventures, Red Sea Ventures, and Advancit Capital.
The Outline operates through Independent Media Corp..
Yes. The Outline was acquired by Bustle.company in April 2019.
The website of The Outline receives about 137 thousand visits a month.