What a wire press release actually gets you

A wire release is a specific product. It is not coverage, and it is not a marketing campaign. Before you pay $99 for one, here is exactly what you get, what you do not, and when it is the wrong tool.

What you get

Your release, word for word, on news sites. After editorial review the wire syndicates the text to 500+ news sites plus 100+ TV and radio network sites. The premium tier ($299) adds AP News, USA Today, Barchart and StreetInsider. The copy is yours. Nobody rewrites it, shortens it or adds an opinion.
A list of live links. When distribution finishes, the order status page lists the placements. Save them. That list is the deliverable.
A dated public record of what shipped. Each placement carries your company name, the date, what you launched and a link to your site. People who search your name later find a factual account written by you, not a forum thread.
Something to point at on launch day. A news URL for your press page, your "as seen in" line, your investor update, an app store listing that asks for coverage, or a partner program that wants a press link.
A check before you pay. The draft is free and the topic rules are applied before checkout. If the wire rejects a paid release anyway, you get a full refund.

What you do not get

A journalist writing about you. A wire is not a pitch. No editor at TechCrunch, The Verge or your trade publication reads it and decides to cover you. Reporters do skim wires for ideas, but that is a bonus, not the product.
A traffic spike. Readers of network news sites rarely click through to a product launch. Expect a few visits, not a launch day.
A search ranking boost you can count on. Syndicated copies often carry nofollow links, and some sites remove older releases. If your goal is backlinks, this is an expensive way to buy them. Buy it for the record, not the links.
Verification or endorsement. The release runs under your name and says what you told us, drafted from your own page. It is not fact-checked by a newsroom and it is not a review.
News you do not have. If nothing changed, the draft has nothing to say. A thin product page plus "we exist" produces a thin release, and a thin release on 500 sites is still thin.

When it is worth $99

You shipped something concrete: a version, a platform, a pricing change, an open source release, a crowdfunding campaign, a store listing.
You need a citable, dated third-party URL for your site, a listing or an application that asks "any press?"
Enterprise buyers, partners or hiring candidates will search your company name and you want them to find a plain account of what you make.
You want a public record that AI assistants and news search can quote with a date and a source.

When to skip it

You want a story. Email three reporters who cover your niche instead. One short paragraph, one link, no attachment. It is free and it is what actually gets coverage. Send them your newsroom page or the wire placement as the link, since reporters like having something dated to cite.
You want backlinks. Spend the $99 on a guest post, a directory listing or a Product Hunt launch.
Your news is on the list of what the wire does not accept: token sales, gambling, adult content, health or cure claims, cannabis, or market-moving financial news such as acquisitions, earnings, IPOs, FDA approvals and lawsuits.
You have no news yet. Wait for the ship date. A release about a thing that is live always drafts better than one about a thing that is coming.

How to get the most out of one

Write a good announcement line and make sure your page states every number you want in the release.
Read the free draft and do not pay for one you would not sign.
When the placements come back, link to two or three of them from your press page and your footer.
Forward one placement to the one reporter who matters to you, with two sentences on why it is relevant to their beat.
Keep your own copy of the release text. Network sites change, your newsroom should not.

Here is a release this service drafted from a product page, exactly as published: read the sample release. That is the shape every wire release here follows.

Try a line and read the free draft

Questions

Will this get me on TechCrunch?

No. A wire release is syndicated to news sites in the network. It is not a pitch to editors and no publication decides to write about you because of it. If you want a story, email the reporter directly and send the placement as a link they can cite.

Do the placements stay online?

Most do for a long time, but some network sites remove older releases and the wire does not control that. Save the list from your order status page and keep your own copy of the text.

Does it show up in Google News?

Some sites in the network are indexed by news search, so your release may appear there for a time. It is not guaranteed and should not be the reason you buy.

Wire at $99 or premium at $299?

Wire covers 500+ news sites plus 100+ TV and radio network sites. Premium adds AP News, USA Today, Barchart and StreetInsider. If you need a name a buyer or an application form will recognize, choose premium. Otherwise the standard wire gives you the same dated record and the same list of links.

Can I see where other releases ran before I pay?

Read the sample release linked above to see the shape and the copy. The placement list for your own release appears on your order status page once distribution finishes, usually the same day on weekdays.