M&A deals from the creator economy that show where the industry could go next

• It’s been a busy year for mergers and acquisitions in the creative economy.
• Startups in influencer marketing, talent management and podcasting have become acquisition targets.
• Companies have also sought to expand globally by acquiring creative startups in new regions.

Dozens of merger and acquisition deals have been completed between companies across the country the economy of the creator in 2024.

One of the most impactful sales was Publicis Groupe’s acquisition of Influential for 500 million dollarstwo M&A experts told Business Insider. It signaled that one of the largest advertising holding companies in the world has considered influencer marketing as a must-have offering.

“If influencers are the new gatekeepers and authority within these digital channels, then they will command the audience,” Chris Erwin, founder of M&A consultancy RockWater, told BI. “Advertising revenue dollars will flow to them.”

Goldman Sachs analysts highlighted influencer marketing spending as a primary driver of growth in the creator economy when valued the industry at $250 billion last year.

A few other clear trends have emerged this year around deals. Outside of influencer marketing, popular acquisition targets include talent management firms and podcasting technology. There has also been a push among non-US firms to grow maker businesses globally through acquisitions.

Business Insider analyzed data from PitchBook and Crunchbase and connected with M&A insiders to understand some of the key deals in 2024.

Here are 4 conclusions from our analysis:

1. Influencer marketing was a big focus among buyers in 2024. It’s a category that has a proven business model compared to some of the more experimental parts of the industry. Beyond Publicis’ deal with Influential, other big advertising brands have brought in influencer expertise through acquisitions.

Some noteworthy offers in this category:

• Marketing firm Stagwell announced in July that it had acquired the influencer-marketing agency Leaders.
• Canadian Talent Agency Dulcedo Group purchased the influencer-marketing application Node in July.

2. The creator economy is maturing globally. Several companies have entered into strategic deals in markets such as India, Japan and Australia. Publicis highlighted Influential’s global reach in its July announcement of the deal.

   “Creators can be truly global from day one,” said Ollie Forsyth, a former senior manager at investment firm Antler who now writes the New Economies newsletter. He pointed to technologies such as audio dubbing and AI-based video editing tools as opening a new way for creators to easily distribute content to a global audience.

Some noteworthy offers in this category:

• The company of French influence Ykone announced in March that it had acquired a majority stake in the Indian influencer marketing firm Bar code to build a business in the influencer market in India.
• The firm of Finnish influence Boks announced in February that it had acquired the German influencer-marketing company the Influencer GmbH to develop their business in Central Europe.

3. Podcasting is a hot category. As platforms like YouTube and Spotify drive viewership (and viewing) of longer content, advertisers are paying close attention. U.S. ad spending on podcasts is expected to reach $2.28 billion this year, up about 16% from 2023, according to EMARKETER forecast. Meanwhile, M&A deals in the category focused on podcasting technology and IP in 2024.

   “It’s a publishers’ game to grow these popular broadcast networks,” said James Creech, an M&A advisor through Quartermast Advisors and founder of the company. Economic Jobs Creator. “I think that’s going to continue because you’re probably going to see some winners in this space.”

Some noteworthy offers in this category:

• Triton Digital said in March that it had acquired an ad tech podcasting firm Ringer to improve its targeting and brand safety technology.
• Night announced in April that it had acquired sheltera podcast network featuring shows from Theo Von and other popular creators.

4. Creator-focused talent firms continue to strengthen. There is no shortage of talent managers and agencies looking to represent creators. But a smaller number are prepared to support the businesses of top creators aiming to book deals, exclusive podcast deals and Hollywood roles.

Some noteworthy offers in this category:

• Talent management company Wasserman announced in September that it had acquired the talent management agency Long haul to grow their game and sports creator business.
• Influencer marketing and creative talent company Whalar announced in October that it had acquired the influencer-management firm The sixteenth.

Looking to 2025

Both Erwin and Creech expect next year to be fruitful for companies in the creator economy.

“We’re going to see more activity next year,” Creech said.

One area the two M&A advisers are watching closely is whether consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies will continue to buy creator-owned businesses, such as Hershey, which bought the Sour Strips brand from creator Maxx Chewning in 2024.

Companies that successfully raised new funding in 2024 could also signal where industry M&A activity is headed. Creative startups with unique offerings in AI, newsletter technology, influencer marketing and e-commerce all attracted investor dollars in the last year. Among the big rounds were creator marketing platform Agentio, newsletter app Beehiiv, social-shopping app Flip and artificial intelligence firm ElevenLabs. Funded startups could become acquirers in 2025.

“If you want to sell or raise capital now is a good time to do it,” Erwin said.