Parts of this article (those related to ownership) need to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(December 2023)
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]
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 3 April 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 paywalltoad-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 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]
^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.
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