Seeking Alpha making push into apps

Jeff John Roberts of PaidContent.org reports that Seeking Alpha is preparing to roll out a series of applications.

Roberts writes, “The apps, which cover verticals like tech, ETF’s and energy, provide on-the-go news for the growing number of people who use their smartphone to catch up on the bus or in a Starbucks line.

“While there’s nothing earth-shaking about a financial news app (Bloomberg, TheStreet and others are in the game too), Seeking Alpha is worth watching because of its mobile strategy and the unusual model that drives its content curation — the articles are churned out primarily by investors rather than professional journalists.

“According to founder David Jackson, the article pays $500 for an article that affects a major stock and $150 in the case of a small cap one. Other contributors receive smaller amounts based on how many people see the article. Jackson said by phone last week that the site paid out $800,000 to writers in Q1 of this year, while also “weeding out” list-based content.

“From a strategic standpoint, Seeking Alpha isn’t trying to make money directly from the apps but hopes instead that the apps will juice sales of the site’s premium product.”

Read more here.