The 2017 Business Information Network report looks a little different this year, with significantly larger overall revenue estimates for the B2B media and information category as a whole and for the Data and Paid Content category in particular. Working with our partner Outsell, we’ve recast the Data and Paid Content category to expand beyond just B2B media publishers to be more representative of the greater paid content universe that Connectiv now represents (including companies such as Thomson Reuters, Bloomberg BNA, Reed Tech, Lexis Nexis and more). For the BIN report, Outsell is tracking a number of verticals including Commercial Information, Credit & Finance, Legal, Science Technology & Healthcare and Human Capital Management.

According to the Connectiv Media & Information census, by 2020, paid content and information services will be the second largest revenue stream for B2B media information companies, trailing only events. That’s a fundamental shift for many companies that continue to see advertising—in both print and digital formats—as a leading business line.

As its name suggests, Boston-based Greentech Media serves the green energy space. What may not be as readily apparent is that paid research and subscription services—not media—are its primary drivers, accounting for almost two-thirds of Greentech’s overall revenue and its fastest growing revenue stream. Here, Greentech CEO Scott Clavenna explains how prioritizing research—complemented by digital media and events—gives Greentech a recurring revenue stream that shields it from some of the fickleness of an advertising-only model and allows for major upsell opportunities with clients.