The New York Times Company is throwing its hat in the daily deals ring with the launch of TimesLimited.
TimesLimited will deliver deals to your inbox when you sign up on the site. It will peddle special offers in limited quantities for set amounts of time. Unlike Groupon, the deals won't get better when more people buy them. Many reports about the launch of Times Limited have described it as a "Groupon clone." But All Things D's Peter Kafka noted that it's less like Groupon and more like Gilt City.
The TimesLimited site says it will offer deals on dining, travel, events, and more.
"We're going for a more experience-based version, more of a curated, upscale offer," head of ad sales Denise Warren told Kafka.
Other media companies have tried to ride the group-buying wave, too. PaidContent said that "newspaper companies like Tribune, McClatchy, and Media General have gone in by partnering with Groupon." But the Times is trying a different approach.
"We realized that we have the assets, the consumer reach, and the relationships with the advertisers to do this on our own," Warren said.
New York Times subscribers and registered users have been sent invitations over the past few days via e-mail. The service will launch in the greater New York area, but paidContent said it will eventually expand to other places.
"Right now, we're building our email list and making sure we have users' permission and interest," Warren also said.
No launch date has been made public for TimesLimited, but Kafka said it's coming later this month.