Agora, Inc.

Agora, Inc. is a holding company for over sixty subsidiary companies, primarily in the publishing industry,[1] but also in information services and real estate.[2][3]

Agora was founded in 1978, and is based in the Mount Vernon neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland.[4] Agora subsidiary operations include offices in London, Paris, Bonn, Melbourne, Johannesburg, Buenos Aires, and Waterford.[4]

History

William Bonner founded Agora, Inc. in 1978. Bonner is now the president of Agora.[1] The company is led by CEO Myles Norin.[4]

Agora began with one major publication in 1979, International Living.[5] In the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, Agora expanded its business to include publishing subsidiaries, real estate holdings, and restaurants.[5]

Operations

The company estimates that its subsidiaries, in total, have annual revenues in excess of $500 million, as of 2015.[6] The company purchases access to the email lists of conservative politicians, including Mike Huckabee, Ron Paul, and Newt Gingrich, to advertise its products.[6]

Subsidiaries

Each subsidiary has its own management team that is independent of Agora.

Agora's U.S.-based subsidiaries include Publishing Services, Namebank, Playa Financial, Early to Rise Publishing, Agora Financial, Agora Entertainment, Laissez Faire Books, Stansberry Research (previously Stansberry & Associates), Common Sense Publishing, The Oxford Club, Money Map Press, Wall Street Daily, Bonner and Partners, TradeSmith, NewMarket Health, Institute of Natural Healing, Sovereign Offshore Services, Delray Beach Publishing, Omnivista Health, Logical Health Alternatives, and Nulogic Nutritionals.[7]

Its non-U.S.-based subsidiaries include International Living Publishing, International Living, International Living Properties, Las Tauguas, Paladin Territories, Inversiones Brito, Rancho Los Perros, Agora Publishing UK, Pangea Ltd., Agora Business Publications, Agora Lifestyles, Fleet Street Publications, Agora Health, FSP Financial Services, MoneyWeek, Fleet Street Letter, Red Hot Penny Shares, The Unit Trust Newsletter, The Recovery Share Guide, The Penny Share Guide, Venture Opinion Publications, 0800 Shares, Fleet Street Publications, Stonehart Publications, Port Phillip Publishing, and More Money Review.[8]

Books and newsletters

As of 2013, Agora’s subsidiaries publish a combined total of more than 300 books and over 120 newsletters through thirty-six publishers.[1][5] Their titles include The Daily Reckoning, an email newsletter with more than 500,000 subscribers, and the UK-based investment magazine, MoneyWeek, which from January to June 2011 had an Audit Bureau of Circulation certified circulation of 47,366.

Agora subsidiary editors have written bestselling books, including:[1]

Litigation against Agora Inc.

In Ginsburg v. Agora, Inc., 915 F. Supp. 733 (1995),[12] Agora defended itself against a civil suit claiming violations of state and federal securities laws.[12] The court dismissed the complaint, holding that Agora, as the publisher of a subscription investment newsletter, was protected by the First Amendment against liability for factual misstatements.[12]

In Lubin v. Agora, Inc., 882 A.2d 833 (2005),[13] pursuant to an investigation into potential violations of Maryland securities laws, the Maryland Securities Commissioner served two subpoenas duces tecum on Agora.[13] Following Agora’s refusal to produce its subscriber lists, marketing lists, and other documents containing information identifying any of its subscribers, the Commissioner filed a motion to compel enforcement.[13] The trial court ruled in favor of Agora and denied the motion, concluding that the Commissioner had failed to demonstrate a compelling need for the subscriber lists as required by the First Amendment, and that the demand for subscriber lists was overbroad.[13] The Maryland Securities Commissioner appealed this decision, but the appeals court ruled in favor of Agora.[13] In its opinion, the state of Maryland unanimously ruled the First Amendment prevents the Commissioner from compelling the discovery of the identities of Agora’s subscribers.[13]

In "SEC v. Agora, Inc., Pirate Investor, and Frank Porter Stansberry", (SEC v. Agora complaint, 2003), the SEC alleged Agora companies wrongly profited from selling false information marketed as insider tips. In US SEC v. Pirate Investor LLC, 580 F.3d 233, 255 (4th Cir. 2009) the US Court of Appeal, against the arguments from publishing industry interveners, found fraud by the Agora company, and confirmed that punishing fraud, whether common law fraud or securities fraud, does not violate the First Amendment.

Philanthropy

In 2002, Agora created the non-profit Roberto Clemente Santa Ana Health Clinic to provide low cost and free medical care to the community of Limon 1 in southwest Nicaragua.[14] The clinic serves about 12,000 patients each year.[14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Bill Bonner: A Driving Force in the Direct-Response Industry". American Writers and Artists. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  2. ↑ "Agora Inc.". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  3. ↑ "Agora Inc.: Beauty as a benefit". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  4. 1 2 3 "Company Overview of Agora, Inc.". Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  5. 1 2 3 "Agora's marketing tactics bring success, accusations". Investors Hub. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  6. 1 2 Tim Murphy (November 2015). "Spam Artists". Mother Jones.
  7. ↑ "Contributors". The Palm Beach Letter. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  8. ↑ "Company Overview of MoneyWeek Ltd.". Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  9. ↑ "Michael Masterson: The Pen Name that Started It All". American Writers and Artists. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  10. ↑ "Review: Ready, Fire, Aim". The Simple Dollar. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  11. ↑ "Marc Lichtenfeld, Associate Investment Director". Healthcare Profits Alert. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  12. 1 2 3 "Jerome Z. Ginsburg, v. Agora, Inc.". Google Scholar. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Melanie Senter Lubin, Securities Commissioner for the State of Maryland v. Agora, Inc.". Google Scholar. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  14. 1 2 "A Little Goes a Long Way...". Santa Ana Health Clinic. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
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