L.A. Times owner says he intends to take newspaper public in coming year
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The owner of the Los Angeles Times is forming a new company that will offer financial shares of the newspaper to the public.
Billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, who acquired the paper in 2018, broke the news Monday in an interview with comedian Jon Stewart on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.”
The company disclosed details of the surprise move in a Tuesday news release, saying it will combine several of Soon-Shiong’s existing businesses into a new media entity called the L.A. Times Next Network.
Shares of the entity will be offered through Regulation A financing, which gives private companies the ability to sell shares to investors without the regulatory requirements of a traditional initial public offering. It limits the amount raised to $75 million and requires the filing of financial disclosure information.
Digital Offering, a Laguna Beach-based investment bank specializing in crowd-financed public offerings, has been hired to handle the process.
The new company will include the Los Angeles Times; LAT Next, a curated creator platform; Nant Games, focused on esports and gaming; NantStudios Virtual Production, which provides video production services; and L.A. Times Studios, supporting streaming and live events.
Soon-Shiong described the move to Stewart as “the opportunity for us to provide a paper that is the voices of the people.” He elaborated on his intent in a statement about the new business.
“My family bought the L.A. Times to ensure a voice for the community and now we have a path to return it to the people,” he said. “With this opportunity, readers, community members, everyone will be the media: direct democracy in action.”
“The need to restore truth and trust in media and in our institutions is more important now more than any time in our country’s history,” Soon-Shiong said. “L.A. Times Next Network will strive to be the platform and the voice of the people.”
Like much of the legacy media business, The Times has faced financial headwinds in recent years. Earlier this year, Adweek reported the newspaper lost in the range of $50 million in 2024. The company reduced the size of its newsroom by 20% due to declines in advertising and subscription revenue.
In 2018, Soon-Shiong purchased the L.A. Times, the San Diego Union-Tribune and several community newspapers in a $500-million deal.
The sale returned The Times to local control after a turbulent 18 years of ownership by Chicago-based Tronc. In 2023, he sold the San Diego Union-Tribune to MediaNews Group.
Soon-Shiong built his fortune through pioneering pharmaceutical and biotech ventures, including cancer treatments.
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