15min (Lithuanian: Penkiolika minučių) is one of the largest news websites in Lithuania, attracting over one million unique users per month.[1] The Estonian media company Postimees Group owns 60% of it and Lithuanian company 4 Bees, owned by Tomas Balžekas, Martynas Basokas, Gabrielė Burbienė, and Tomas Bindokas holds 40%.[2]

15min
IndustryNews media
Key people
Tomas Balžekas
CEO
Revenue€5.221 million (2022)[3]
ParentPostimees Group
Websitewww.15min.lt

History

Old logo of 15min
15min headquarters in Vilnius

Founded on 1 September 2005, 15min started as a daily newspaper distributed freely across Vilnius, Kaunas, and Klaipėda through various channels, including in public transport, streets, and some cafés. Seven months later, the Norwegian media conglomerate Schibsted acquired the company overseeing its operations.

On 7 August 2008, the company expanded its reach by launching the online news portal 15min.lt. The frequency of publication was reduced to three times per week as of Autumn 2009.[4] In December 2011, the publication transitioned into a weekly newspaper obtainable in seven Lithuanian cities.[5][6] Additionally, it launched a subscription delivery in April 2012.[7]

In June 2013, the newspaper underwent a substantial transitional shift. A strategic decision was made to completely discontinue the printed publication and commit exclusively to digital publishing.[4] In September, Schibsted decided to exit the Baltic market. Consequently, the Eesti Meedia, the parent company of the 15min, was sold to the senior management..[8]

15min began functioning without an editor-in-chief in April 2015, entrusting department heads and editors with more managerial responsibility.[9] Known for its investigative journalism, it was an official partner of the investigation team that verified and published the Panama Papers on April 3, 2016. [10][11][12][13] That same month 15min updated the portal and the next month it disabled anonymous comments.[14] At the same time it also introduced a paywall to ad-blockers, thus partially charging for content.[15]

Under a partnership agreement active until 2017, 15min carried pieces from other brands of the Žurnalų leidybos grupės such as Žmonės. After that it replaced them with sections such as "Life," "Food," and "Names."[16]

In March 2019, in conjunction with the Sarajevo-based Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, 15min broke a story regarding a nearly $9 billion global money laundering scheme allegedly constructed by Sberbank CIB (formerly known as "Troika Dialog").[17] The scheme is known as ŪkioLeaks or Troika Laundromat.[18][19][20][21][22]

In October 2020, reporters at the investigative department resigned in protest against planned restructuring of the editorial team which would see several editors including Raimundas Celencevičius, the chief editor, removed from their desks. The journalists who resigned accused the management of editorial interference. 47 workers at the news portal founded a new trade union to challenge the management.[23][24][25]

Leaders

Managers

  • 2005–2017 Tomas Balžekas;
  • 2017–2021 Ramūnas Šaučikovas;
  • 2021 Donatas Večerskis;
  • 2021–present Tomas Balžekas.

Editors-in-Chief

  • 2008–2010 Žilvinas Pekarskas;
  • 2011 Liudas Dapkus;
  • 2012–2015 Rimvydas Valatka;
  • 2015–2017 none
  • 2017–2021 Raimundas Celencevičius;
  • 2021–present Vaidotas Beniušis

References

  1. ↑ "gemiusAudience: rugpjūčio mėnesio apžvalga". Gemius Baltic (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  2. ↑ "15min.lt". www.vle.lt (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  3. ↑ "15Min, UAB revenue, profit", www.rekvizitai.lt
  4. 1 2 "„15min" nutraukia popierinio savaitraščio leidybą". Delfi (in Lithuanian). 27 June 2013. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  5. ↑ "Laikraštis „15 min" taps savaitraščiu, bus atleista dalis darbuotojų" (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 7 January 2012.
  6. ↑ "Verslas". www.tv3.lt (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  7. ↑ "Populiariausią miestų laikraštį „15min" jau galima prenumeruoti". 15min (in Lithuanian). 20 April 2012. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  8. ↑ Aukštuolytė, Rima. "„Schibsted" Baltijos žiniasklaidos verslą parduoda estams už 30 mln. EUR". vz.lt (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 25 July 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  9. ↑ "Atsinaujinusi 15min komanda: kas mes esame ir kaip nuo šiol dirbame". 15min.lt (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 10 May 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  10. ↑ "Media Partners: Panama Papers". 27 January 2018. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  11. ↑ "The Panama Papers". MIT - Docubase. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  12. ↑ Tribune, the Lithuania (10 August 2016). "2 individuals and 7 companies in Lithuania under investigation after Panama Papers leak". the Lithuania Tribune. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  13. ↑ "Counting the Panama Papers money: how we reached $1.24 billion - ICIJ". 15 July 2019. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  14. ↑ "„Interneto higienos" judėjimas: kaip šią 15min idėją vertina garsūs žmonės". 15min.lt (in Lithuanian). 2 May 2016. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  15. ↑ Balčiūnienė, Rūta. "Naujas žingsnis: „15min" be reklamos – 1 Eur per mėnesį". vz.lt (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  16. ↑ Balčiūnienė, Rūta. "Skiriasi „15min" ir „Žurnalų leidybos grupė"". vz.lt (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  17. ↑ O'Donnell, Tim (4 March 2019). "One of Putin's closest friends was just implicated in a massive money laundering scheme". TheWeek.com. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  18. ↑ Černiauskas, Šarūnas (4 March 2019). "Ūkio bankas – milijardinės pinigų plovimo sistemos centre" [Ūkio bankas is at the center of the billion-dollar money laundering system]. 15min (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  19. ↑ Garside, Juliette (4 March 2019). "Q&A: what is the 'Troika Laundromat' and how did it work?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  20. ↑ "The Troika Laundromat". OCCRP. Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  21. ↑ "Russian Troika Dialog bank investigation reveals offshore money laundering scheme". bne IntelliNews. 6 March 2019. Archived from the original on 28 October 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  22. ↑ O'Conner, Colin (4 March 2019). "The Troika Laundromat: Five Quick Takeaways". RFE/RL. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  23. ↑ "Reporters from Lithuania's 15min.lt resign in protest against 'interference'". LRT News. Lithuanian National Radio and Television. 5 October 2020. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
  24. ↑ "Gindami žiniasklaidos laisvę naujienų portalo 15min darbuotojai susibūrė į profesinę sąjungą". 15min.lt/verslas (in Lithuanian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  25. ↑ "Dėl nesutarimų su direktoriumi „15min" paliko Tyrimų skyriaus žurnalistai, įkurta profesinė sąjunga". lrt.lt (in Lithuanian). 5 October 2020. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.


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