1 big thing: 😬 Streaming's moment of crisis 

Animated illustration of a briefcase, with buckles as eyes, looking around nervously. 

2. The BFD: 'Survivor' producer to go public via SPAC

3. Charted: 🎙️ Podcasting to reach $4B by 2024

4. Deal flow

5. Movin' on up (or out)

6. Channel surfing

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🐔 Situational awareness: Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment is acquiring Redbox, the struggling DVD-rental kiosk company, in an all-stock transaction. 

As Tim wrote last week, Redbox's stock price recently doubled and it secured $50 million in new funding.

@tim_bays: "House Hunters: International" on Discovery+. So many poor decisions are made on this show.

@kerrymflynn: Celtics vs Bucks on TNT. My sister is forcing me to support the Celtics.

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Media Deals

1 big thing: 🤷 Disney's content conundrum 

2. The BFD: Shutterstock fishes into Pond5

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3. Overheard: 🗣️ IAB's Podcast Upfront

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🦖 Quote of the day: "I'm buying the dinosaur because the dinosaur comes with cash flow and the dinosaur is gonna lay nice little dinosaur eggs called digital ad businesses," Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment CEO William Rouhana Jr. told Forbes of the Redbox acquisition. 

@tim_bays: "Hacks" on HBO Max. Jean Smart can do no wrong. 

@kerrymflynn: No content for me because I'll be at my bachelorette in Disney World from Thursday night to Monday! Cheers to drinking around the world. 

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1 big thing: Comcast vet tapped for streaming JV 

An image of Marcein Jenckes standing by himself

2. The BFD: Temporary tweet

Screen grab of Musk's tweet on putting Twitter deal on hold

3. Warner Music, BMG in line for Pink Floyd show

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3. Deal flow

4. Movin' on up (or out)

5. Channel surfing

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🐦 Situational awareness: Elon has put his purchase of Twitter "temporarily on hold," which sank the company's shares this morning. More on that below.

@tim_bays:  "Trailer Park Boys." The YouTube clips alone are worth spending an hour watching.  

@kerrymflynn: "Let It Go" and other Disney tunes while stumbling around Epcot. 

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1. 🔥 Nielsen under fire

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2. 🐘 Will Netflix crash budgets?

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3. Charted: 💰 Upfront spending

4. Do we still need Upfronts?

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5. 🗓️ The week's schedule

5. Deal flow

7. Channel surfing: Upfront edition

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Happy Upfronts week, Media Deals readers!

Situational awareness: Welcome to another very special edition of this newsletter. This one: all things Upfronts, which return in person to New York City after two years of going virtual. 

@tim_bays: St. Louis Cardinals @ New York Mets on MLB.tv. Something tells me this series will be heated, given what happened last month in St. Louis.

@kerrymflynn: "Licorice Pizza" on Delta Inflight Movies. On the way home from Disney World, I'm catching up on the only Best Picture nominee I was still missing. 

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1 big thing: High cost of TV sports

2. The BFD: AMC plans shopping spree

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3. Charted: Why DirecTV is punting on NFL Sunday Ticket

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📚 Situational awareness: Dr. Seuss Enterprises, the private company that manages the work of the late Theodor Seuss Geisel, is talking with bankers about a possible sale, Axios' Sara Fischer scoops.

@tim_bays: "Top Gun" on Netflix. Required history lesson before I see the sequel.

@kerrymflynn: "Tiffany Dover Is Dead*" on Apple Podcasts. Binged this entire series yesterday. It's a fascinating dive into conspiracies and misinformation. 

Thank you for reading Axios Pro Media Deals! Please ask your friends, colleagues and sports viewers to sign up.

Shutterstock's purchase of Pond5 is another step in the company's efforts to scale its library beyond stock photos, further expanding its library of video, music and sound effects.

Why it matters: Content marketplaces have been rapidly consolidating as companies see opportunities combining assets, contributor networks and customers.   

Details: Pond5's collection includes 30 million licensable video clips, 1.6 million music tracks and 1.7 million sound effects assets.

Its customers include Netflix, Disney, NBC, BBC, Discovery Channel and The Wall Street Journal. 

"The acquisition of Pond5 provides immense value for our global customer base, with unparalleled access to one of the largest collections of editorial and commercial video content in the world," Jon Oringer, interim CEO at Shutterstock, said in a statement.

Of note: On Wednesday, Shutterstock announced Paul Hennessy has been named CEO, effective July 1. He succeeds Oringer, Shutterstock's founder who will remain as executive chairman of the board. 

Context: This is far from Shutterstock's first acquisition. Last year, it bought TurboSquid and PicMonkey. Earlier, it acquired Amper Music, Flashstock Technology, Rex Features, PremiumBeat, WebDAM and Bigstock. 

Pond5 further grows Shutterstock's collection of royalty-free music, which its competitors have also been growing. Adobe works with Epidemic Sound and Jamendo. Getty Images hosts music from Epidemic Sound, too, Music Business Worldwide's Murray Stassen writes.

The intrigue: Since Shutterstock is so much more than photos now, does its name even make sense anymore?

Shutterstock acquires stock video marketplace Pond5 for $210M

The deal scales Shutterstock's library beyond stock photos, adding more video and music.

Media deals

Shutterstock&#x27;s purchase of Pond5 is another step in the company&#x27;s efforts to scale its library beyond stock photos, further expanding its library of video, music and sound effects.Why it matters: Content marketplaces have been rapidly consolidating as companies see opportunities combining assets, contributor networks and customers.

Off the heels of Netflix's terrible earnings and admission that it's considering an ad-supported product, it's no surprise some media executives took this week's NewFronts as an opportunity to take slight jabs at the competitor:

NBCU's President, Advertising Sales and Partnerships Laura Molen: 

"There are some streamers out there that have only just decided to add advertising and are struggling to figure it out. And there are digital video sites that think they’ve found some pretty good content when most of their best stuff is ours." 

Tubi's Chief Content Officer Adam Lewinson:

"At a time when many companies are scaling back, Tubi is planning to double down by doubling down our number of originals."

Condé Nast's Global Chief Revenue Officer Pamela Drucker Mann:

“Audiences don’t watch platforms. They watch the content.” 

Overheard at the NewFronts

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Streaming media

Off the heels of Netflix&#x27;s terrible earnings and admission that it&#x27;s considering an ad-supported product, it&#x27;s no surprise some media executives took this week&#x27;s NewFronts as an opportunity to take slight jabs at the competitor:NBCU&#x27;s President, Advertising Sales and Partnerships Laura Molen: <ul><li>&quot;There are some streamers out there that have only just decided to add advertising and are struggling to figure it out. And there are digital video sites that think they’ve found some pretty good content when most of their best stuff is ours.&quot; </li></ul>

Data: IAB U.S. Podcast Advertising Revenue study, prepared by PwC; Chart: Thomas Oide/Axios

Podcast advertising in the U.S. will exceed $2 billion in revenue this year and $4 billion by 2024, according to the latest annual revenue study by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PwC. 

Why it matters: Podcasting is far from a sideshow. IAB released the report ahead of the Podcast Upfronts, its three-day event where publishers and ad tech companies pitched brands for ad dollars.

That revenue growth follows deeper investments from publishers in audio and more audience engagement, along with improvements in ad tech. Here's some of what publishers pitched on Tuesday: 

Disney on IP: "This probably won't come as a surprise, but [Edison's] research showed Disney fans are incredibly loyal and engaged. The most exciting finding for us was that Disney fans who don't consume podcasts right now are likely to start listening to them in order to connect with their favorite franchises." — Reena Mehta, Disney's SVP of streaming and digital content

WBUR on history: "We don't always get the credit. But public media has been inventing stuff for a long time — cooking shows, call-in shows, chart-topping podcasts." — Amory Sivertson, co-host and senior producer of "Endless Thread"

iHeartPodcasts on content diversity: "You have this spread of 50 shows, each driving more than a million monthly downloads, and they're not all in one category. It's not all true crime or history or news or politics or sports. It's spread across 19 or 20 categories." — Conal Byrne, CEO of the iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group

Podcasting advertising in U.S. to reach $4 billion by 2024

That revenue growth follows deeper investments from publishers and improvements in ad tech.

Podcasts

Podcast advertising in the U.S. will exceed $2 billion in revenue this year and $4 billion by 2024, according to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="latest annual revenue study" data-vars-click-url="https://www.iab.com/insights/u-s-podcast-advertising-revenue-report-fy-2021-results-2022-2024-growth-projections/" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.iab.com/insights/u-s-podcast-advertising-revenue-report-fy-2021-results-2022-2024-growth-projections/" target="_blank">latest annual revenue study</a> by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PwC. Why it matters: Podcasting is far from a sideshow. IAB released the report ahead of the Podcast Upfronts, its three-day event where publishers and ad tech companies pitched brands for ad dollars.

Nielsen's fall from grace has been abundantly clear. The deals that media executives have inked with other measurement companies were a clear sign of the company's tumble. That will all be on display this week during the Upfronts.

Why it matters: The media marketplace is trying to shake free from its reliance on Nielsen — or any one currency — to value their inventory. It could also make the process of buying and selling ads far more complicated.

Catch up quick: ViacomCBS announced a new partnership with VideoAmp last year. NBCUniversal and WarnerMedia (which is now under Warner Bros. Discovery) both linked up with iSpot.tv.

Disney is testing new measurement solutions with nearly 100 vendors including iSpot.tv, LiveRamp, VideoAmp, Viant and Moat. It named Samba TV as an official partner in March. 

Yes, but: Nielsen isn't gone. Disney is working with Nielsen on a new product via trials with ad agency Publicis Groupe. Fox's Tubi is expanding its relationship with Nielsen.

"Nielsen has been working with big data for almost a decade. We combine that with a high-quality panel to correct for the biases," Amenah Atai, general manager of digital and advanced TV for Nielsen, said during the company's virtual NewFront event earlier this month. 

What they're saying: In a March research note, Craig Huber Associates threw shade on the narrative that Nielsen is losing market share to startups. 

"...Despite the headlines, none of the large ad holding companies have even hinted at bailing on Nielsen and they are the ultimate arbiters in video measurement," the firm's analyst Doug Arthur wrote. 

Linda Yaccarino, NBCU's chairman of global advertising and partnerships, told Axios during our Axios Pro live event earlier this month that the landscape is changing quickly. 

"As the consumer has moved at lightning speed, across platforms, across screens, across distribution vehicles, measurement hasn't been able to keep up," she said.

What's next: Whatever changes may be brewing at Nielsen will be overseen by the company's new private equity owners. 

Nielsen under fire as Upfront Week begins

Nielsen's fall from grace has been abundantly clear.

Television advertising

Nielsen&#x27;s fall from grace has been abundantly clear. The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="deals that media executives have inked" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/01/18/nielsen-measurement-streaming" data-vars-content-id="7d2a8396-d445-4a96-af3f-1f68c212dc5e" data-vars-headline="Nielsen under fire as Upfront Week begins" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/01/18/nielsen-measurement-streaming" target="_self">deals that media executives have inked</a> with other measurement companies were a clear sign of the company&#x27;s tumble. That will all be on display this week during the Upfronts.Why it matters: The media marketplace is trying to shake free from its reliance on Nielsen — or any one currency — to value their inventory. It could also make the process of buying and selling ads far more complicated.

Podcast publishers touted the scale and quality of their shows along with the uniqueness of their networks on the second day of the Interactive Advertising Bureau's Podcast Upfront.

Why it matters: As we previously shared, podcast advertising in the U.S. will exceed $2 billion in revenue this year and $4 billion by 2024, per the latest annual revenue study by the IAB and PwC.

Here's some of what was pitched on Wednesday: 

Sony on translating IP: "While audio is closest to our heart, we do make podcasts with an eye toward their potential to translate to other media. Given Sony Music Entertainment's relationship with Hollywood talent partners, we can help creators make the leap to TV and film.

Already, 'Chameleon: Hollywood Con Queen' has been picked up as a TV series, and we will have a number of similar announcements in the coming months." ⁠— Charlie Yedor, director, business development and content partnerships

SiriusXM on brand safety: "Suitability is a sliding scale that is deeply personal for all brands. We employ innovative ad tech to help brands further control their buys. AdsWizz's transcription AI transcribes and intelligently categorizes shows beyond keyword and down to contextual essence of millions of episodes." — Lizzie Widhelm, SVP of ad innovation and B2B marketing 

Vox Media on creators: "The secret to our success has always been our creators and our ability to cultivate and find really smart people who want to go out and create amazing work. Other networks may chase celebrities, but what we search for are influence and expertise." — Nilay Patel, EIC of The Verge and host of "Decoder" and "The Vergecast"

Overheard: IAB's Podcast Upfront

U.S. podcast advertising will exceed $2 billion in revenue this year and $4 billion by 2024.

Illustration of multiple text speech bubbles on a screen

Podcast publishers touted the scale and quality of their shows along with the uniqueness of their networks on the second day of the Interactive Advertising Bureau&#x27;s Podcast Upfront.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="As we previously shared" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/pro/media-deals/2022/05/11/podcasting-ads-us-4-billion-2024" data-vars-content-id="b50a4a75-8e1a-4db6-b6c2-3b0748d9a14a" data-vars-headline="Overheard: IAB&#x27;s Podcast Upfront" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/pro/media-deals/2022/05/11/podcasting-ads-us-4-billion-2024" target="_self">As we previously shared</a>, podcast advertising in the U.S. will exceed $2 billion in revenue this year and $4 billion by 2024, per the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="latest annual revenue study" data-vars-click-url="https://www.iab.com/insights/u-s-podcast-advertising-revenue-report-fy-2021-results-2022-2024-growth-projections/" data-vars-content-id="b50a4a75-8e1a-4db6-b6c2-3b0748d9a14a" data-vars-headline="Overheard: IAB&#x27;s Podcast Upfront" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.iab.com/insights/u-s-podcast-advertising-revenue-report-fy-2021-results-2022-2024-growth-projections/" target="_blank">latest annual revenue study</a> by the IAB and PwC.

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Nielsen under fire as Upfront Week begins

Overheard: IAB's Podcast Upfront

Shutterstock acquires stock video marketplace Pond5 for $210M

Podcasting advertising in U.S. to reach $4 billion by 2024

Overheard at the NewFronts

Newsletter editions

Media: 💰 Upfronts edition

Media: Comcast promo

Media: 🤷 Disney's ARPU aches

Media: 😬 Streaming's perilous moment

Media: 🍿 AMC's shopping spree