“But these new hybrid ad models do something radically different. A specific brand will work directly with a publisher to create a custom piece of content, paying some upfront amount for the creative aspect of the campaign. But then the brand will provide specific affiliate links that measure some ki…”— Simon Owens, whatsnewinpublishing.com
“Those who dreamed of joining a startup media company that rockets to an IPO or a cash-rich exit are waking up to a less pleasant reality: The hoped-for pot of gold probably looks more like an all-stock merger that pushes off any payday, possibly in perpetuity.”— Max Willens, digiday.com
“We’re trying to first see if we can get it to work in countries where TikTok is not already big before we go and compete with TikTok in countries where they are big.”— Mark Zuckerberg, theverge.com
“Bustle Digital Group is staking the next phase of its growth on an expansion into new verticals and plans to incorporate technology acquired this spring into the rest of its portfolio, as growth in the older parts of its portfolio begins to slow down.”— Max Willens, digiday.com
“Food52, a digital bazaar that sells upscale home goods, said it sold a majority stake to venture firm TCG for $83 million, a deal that gives TCG an entree into the world of fine dining and home accessories.”— Benjamin Mullin, wsj.com
“Bankoff has pledged not to cut any editorial jobs when the two companies combine, which leaves open the very real possibility that Vox will consolidate other parts of the business, like tech or sales operations. He told me the deal is not premised on cost-cutting, but that’s different from saying he…”— Peter Kafka, vox.com
“Nearly 60 percent of funded startups pay for Slack — much higher than the rate for Microsoft Teams.”— Rani Molla, vox.com
“BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti has been talking about revenue diversification and balance for years. Following his company’s latest executive departure, the digital publisher will be leaning even harder into that strategy.”— Max Willens, digiday.com
“A young person who is super-engaged is attracted to FADER because we help create culture, we’re not just covering things that happen, and I think that mindset is very appealing to brands.”— Andy Cohn, foliomag.com
“HBO’s cancellation hadn’t come as a shock, especially after AT&T’s purchase of Time Warner, the network’s parent company, and the subsequent departure of CEO Richard Plepler.”— Reeves Wiedeman, nymag.com
“The business models of the web are broken and toxic, and we need to identify new ways to support creators and to reward creativity.”— Ryan Merkley, fastcompany.com
“I mean, I can think of at least a dozen other socially manipulative, intellectually bankrupt writers who’ve perpetuated far worse personal and professional scams, but who my peers will never air out loud because they don’t want to shake the tree and bring down a world of bird shit.”— Jeremy Gordon, theoutline.com
“Following Dickens’ firing, ComingSoon writer Christian Long was fired by Severino as well, also for apparently not reaching out to Severino via his preferred platform.”— Paul Blest, splinternews.com
“Vice Media LLC is cutting staff at its cable channel Viceland, part of a broader reorganization intended to sharpen its focus on news programming, according to people familiar with the matter.”— Sahil Patel and Benjamin Mullin, wsj.com
“Executives from some of the biggest U.S. news organizations met with a British economist last fall at Washington’s exclusive Metropolitan Club to strategize on a mutual obsession: getting their industry out from under the thumb of Google and Facebook.”— NANCY SCOLA, MARGARET HARDING MCGILL, politico.com
“It’s time for pharma marketers to look beyond TV, at least according to a new report from Publicis Media’s Zenith agency. The healthcare ad spending forecast predicts declines in TV spending across all healthcare, even in the TV-ad-entrenched pharma sector.”— Beth Bulik, fiercepharma.com
“The Infatuation, the food guide-turned-media platform-turned ‘360 marketing partner’, is primed to diversify its monetization strategy beyond branded content – a strategy that’s so far seen it bring food culture to the likes of Nike and Amex and unify internal brand teams with its plug-and-play appr…”— Katie Deighton, thedrum.com
“The acquisition of College Fashionista underlines Her Campus's strategic focus on expanding its ownership of the college audience and the media brands that serve this demographic as the company turns ten this year.”— Kayla Hoey, prnewswire.com