Has Patch Finally Cracked the Code on Hyperlocal?

By: Lucia Moses | Digiday

At its peak in 2013, hyperlocal news network Patch had all the trappings of a Web startup: Employees got lavish expense accounts, and the headquarters in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood was equipped with a game room and even a colonial-style tavern, Jimmy Q’s Publick House.

Today, the beer taps are dry and the pool tables are gone, along with most of the perks that employees enjoyed. But a year after AOL sold the struggling division to investment firm Hale Global, its new owners say the stripped-down Patch is profitable, evidence that there’s actually a business model for hyperlocal news.