> However, the operating profit excludes cash payments of between £25-30m for capital costs and other business expenditures, which are an annual draw-down from the Scott Trust, of which The Guardian is part. If these annual costs were included, The Guardian would still be loss-making

At first, I misinterpreted this to mean they're counting money granted by a wealthy donor as profit. And without that, they would still be losing money. But, as clarified in the comments below, the Guardian is actually paying the Scott Trust. Also the Scott Trust owns The Guardian. Forgive my confusion. This isn't a straightforward relationship.

> Nevertheless, the operating profit marks the completion of a three-year plan that few observers thought likely to succeed, and which leant heavily on a - for British media at least - eccentric business decision to ask readers to contribute financially for something they could get for free.

So the business model is asking users for a donation? This sounds more like a non-profit to me.

I guess this is better than bleeding millions/year but we can hardly call this a good business.