Time Hires Mark Howard as Its New Chief Operating Officer, Ushering in 'Time 3.0'

The general news publisher Time has hired media executive Mark Howard as its new chief operating officer, according to a memo shared by chief executive officer Jessica Sibley. Howard, who will relocate to New York for the position, begins Monday. In the role, Howard will oversee operations including print, digital, technology, consumer marketing, ecommerce, licensing, cryptomedia and finance, helping Time continue its transformation from a legacy print magazine into a multichannel editorial brand. “Jessica laid out a vision for Time 3.0 about six months ago, and I am excited to help realize that,” Howard told Adweek. “It is a vision for how we can take what Time did in its first century and translate that into our second.” Howard joins Time at a critical juncture. The publisher, which marked its centennial earlier this year, has invested heavily in efforts to diversify its revenue stream, launching Time Studios, expanding its events portfolio and experimenting with new technology, including cryptomedia and artificial intelligence. One Year After Removing Its Paywall, Quartz’s Traffic Continues to Drop Howard takes the reins from Ian Orefice, the former president and COO of Time and Time Studios, who left the company June 2, a departure that has not been previously reported. The publisher has named Alexa Conway and Mike Beck as the interim co-heads of Time Studios in his absence. Before coming to Time, Howard served a brief stint at the advertising technology company OpenWeb. Prior to that, he worked as the chief advertising and partnerships officer at Penske Media Corporation for two years and the chief revenue officer at Forbes for eight years. The publisher also turned heads earlier this year when, in April, it announced plans to drop its digital paywall June 1. The decision made Time one of only a handful of news organizations, alongside Quartz, to reverse its paywall strategy. Time has employed some version of a digital paywall since 2011. Beginning this month, all 250,000 of its digital subscriptions ended, according to a Time spokesperson, eliminating a substantial portion of its reader revenue. Time still has roughly 1.3 million paid subscribers to its print product. Despite a depressed advertising climate, the publisher has notched commercial gains over the last two years, increasing year-over-year revenue 10% in 2021 and 19% in 2022, according to a spokesperson. Last year, the company brought in around $200 million in revenue. Franchise focus and AI experimentation Under the ownership of billionaire Salesforce founder Marc Benioff, who acquired the company in 2018, Time has invested heavily in modernizing its digital business, and furthering that effort is a primary focus for Howard. To spearhead the initiative, the publisher has made a series of key personnel appointments in recent months. In November, it hired the former COO of Forbes, Jessica Sibley, as its new CEO, and in January, it brought aboard Sadé Muhammad, also from Forbes, to serve as its chief marketing officer. In April, the publisher promoted Sam Jacobs, formerly the deputy editor, to serve as its editor-in-chief, the youngest person to do so since co-founder Henry Luce in 1922. Jacobs replaced Edward Felsenthal, who remains executive chairman and a contributing editor. As part of this broader evolution, Time has taken substantial steps to expand its revenue portfolio. In particular, the publisher has sought to more effectively monetize its brand equity through tentpole franchises and events, such as Time100 and the Time Person of the Year. It has also expanded several of its franchises globally, hosting events in locations including Singapore, Rwanda and Israel. These franchises act as a differentiator for Time, a key factor as publishers compete for advertisers’ limited ad budgets, according to Howard. Howard also points to recent editorial innovations from Time, including its debut of AI-powered quizzes, as evidence of a broader spirit of experimentation he hopes to accelerate. Under Felsenthal, Time became one of the first publishers to embrace the potential of cryptomedia, minting and selling a magazine cover in March 2021 for $435,000. “We have been really focused on these paths forward to represent what Time will look like in this second century,” Howard said. “You will see innovative thinking and creative approaches when we go to market.”