TOGETHER WITH

It’s Monday and if you’ve had ChatGPT on the brain, you’re not alone. OpenAI’s AI model has officially made its debut in the human body thanks to brain implant company Synchron.

Table of Contents:

• 💸 Publicis Groupe just bought “the world’s largest influencer marketing agency” for $500M

• Could Kamala Harris’ “brat summer” win her the election?

• 🏀 Reddit is teaming up with all your favorite pro sports orgs

• On the latest episode of Creator Upload…

GAME ON

Reddit is teaming up with the NFL, NBA, MLB, PGA TOUR, and NASCAR

The partnerships: Reddit is going all in on digital sports content. The online platform has announced partnerships with the NFL, NBA, MLB, PGA TOUR, and NASCAR, with the intention of giving its enormous cadre of sports fans “access to video highlights from games and tournaments, player AMAs, behind-the-scenes videos” and other “special content.”

• The other main goal of those partnerships, of course, is to generate revenue through increased ad spend. Per The Information, Reddit aims to sell lucrative ads alongside newly-introduced sports content. Any resulting revenue will be split with the participating leagues.
  
  

• That system has already shown early success. Reddit says it initially pilot-tested its sports-focused program during the NFL’s 2023-24 season, with advertisers like Samsung, Ford, and Volkswagen seeing increased purchase intent, brand favorability, and awareness.

The context: Reddit’s continuing ability to attract advertisers is more crucial this year than ever before. While the company grew revenue 21% in 2023, it’s now a public company that must answer to both users and shareholders. Reddit intends to satisfy both groups by expanding its new program to other niches favored by users in the 100,000+ communities on its platform.

The big picture: Starting with digital sports content is a smart financial move even if you don’t take into account Reddit’s impressive community numbers. The category has weathered the decline of cable better than many verticals, with the NBA consistently bringing in 1.6 million views per regular-season game.

• Reddit isn’t the only distributor getting in on the action. The NBA and WNBA announced $76 billion worth of rights deals just last week, with Disney, NBC, and Amazon paying between $1.8 billion and $2.6 billion each for annual broadcasting rights.

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HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• Need a primer on brat summer and TikTok’s Momala movement? Check out our guide to Kamala Harris’ FYP takeover. (Tubefilter)
  
  

• Documents filed by the Department of Justice claim that TikTok staff had access to tools that allowed them to collect information about users’ views on “gun control, abortion, and religion.” (Engadget)
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• Warner Bros. Discovery is suing the NBA based on the argument that it should have been given an opportunity to match Amazon’s bid for broadcasting rights. (Engadget)
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• In an interview with Variety, voice actor Travis Willingham confirmed that “the desire” and “the potential is definitely there” for a feature film based on Critical Role content. (Variety)

ACQUISITION ALERT

The world’s “larger influencer marketing company by revenue” just sold for $500M

The $500M purchase: Publicis Groupe is buying into influencer marketing.

The France-based advertising agency and advertising holding company has acquired Influential, which it describes as the “largest influencer marketing company in the world by revenue.” The reported price tag on that deal: $500 million.

• Publicis’ investment in the influential marketing space marks a significant departure from its long-time focus on TV-based marketing. The company made $14.2 billion last year by deploying traditional campaigns for major clients like Walmart and Heineken, most of which featured celebrities or paid actors.
  
  

• Publicis’ acquisition of Influential will majorly expand its existing talent and brand connections. The Las Vegas-based agency—which was founded in 2014 by CEO Ryan Detert and will continue to operate independently post-acquisition—claims to have a network of over 3.5 million creators and 300 brands, with 100 billion data points related to those groups and existing marketing strategies.

The context: Publicis’ expansion into influencer marketing (and connected TV, which it plans to focus on going forward) lines up with the current direction of the advertising world.

Influencer marketing is now a $7.02 billion business in the U.S. and—as Publicis itself pointed out—“social media spend is expected to reach $186 billion” by 2025, “exceeding global linear TV ad spend for the first time.” The audience for creator-led campaigns is growing, too: YouTube alone now claims 1 billion hours of watch time on TV screens every day.

• While those trends are far from new, many industry powerhouses have recently embraced creator marketing as way to appeal to new generations of consumers. This year’s Super Bowl, for instance, had a stronger creator presence than ever before, with YouTubers like MrBeast (307M subscribers) and Mark Rober (55M subscribers) working directly with the NFL to reach new demographics.

LISTEN UP 🎙️

This week on the podcast…

Brat Summer & Stolen Vibes: Last week made its mark as one of the most chaotic of 2024. TikTok was abuzz in the aftermath of Joe Biden’s election bow-out, leading to the crowning of Kamala Harris as “brat.” That hubbub was followed by another industry-shaking event: Transformers director Michael Bay’s decision to put his full weight behind a Skibidi Toilet movie.

• Whether you’re an industry expert or just fell out of a coconut tree, Creator Upload has all the context you’ll need to keep up with Momala, Skibidi, and more. Check out the latest episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen. Drew Baldwin helped edit, too. It's a team effort.