Private equity-backed Later said that it plans to acquire influencer marketing firm Mavely in a cash and equity deal valued at $250 million.

Later manages social media and influencer campaigns where creators receive commissions for posting sponsored content. Mavely runs a network of 120,000 creators that work with 1,400 brands and retailers like Nike and Macy’s. Mavely also has tools that brands use to track the sales driven by influencer campaigns.

This sales-tracking technology was the major impetus behind the acquisition, said Later CEO Scott Sutton.

Mavely’s technology can track the sales of specific products from individual campaigns, he said.

“When we talked with our marketers, one of the biggest things that they wanted to see was bottom-of-funnel outcomes and see the ROI that was driven from their campaigns and marketing efforts,” Sutton told ADWEEK. “As it grows and matures, marketers are wanting to understand and drive performance with greater accountability and greater data—that’s what we’re aiming at.”

Up until now, Later has primarily focused on providing marketers with broader metrics like brand awareness and consideration but has lacked data to prove the performance of influencer marketing, he said.

Private equity firm Summit Partners owns Later and financed the acquisition. Mavely was owned by beauty and wellness company Nu Skin Enterprises, which acquired it in 2021.

Influencer marketing M&A is heating up

Later’s acquisition is the latest in a string of recent M&A in influencer marketing.

Marketers are increasingly looking for influencer marketing firms to handle everything from finding talent, running campaigns, and measuring a campaign’s performance.

In July, Publicis Groupe acquired Influential for a reported $500 million. That same month, Stagwell announced its acquisition of influencer marketing firm Leaders. And influencer marketing company Izea acquired sports marketing firm The Reiman Agency.

Brands are also getting more sophisticated with their influencer campaigns, Sutton said. For example, brands are moving performance ad budgets from programmatic to influencer campaigns, he said. Historically, that money came from social media budgets, he said. 

Brands are also merging their influencer and commerce teams on campaigns that use a mix of micro-influencers and big-name celebrities. While celebrities have a big audience that can get brands’ attention, micro-influencers have audiences that are targeted around specific areas and interests, Sutton said. Later has run more than three million influencer campaigns and uses proprietary AI to model out the performance that brands can expect when working with specific influencers.

“We look to balance not just working with the smallest creators or the largest but a mix across all the different sizes,” Sutton said.

WTVG in Toledo, Ohio is making changes to its anchor lineup for the New Year.

Starting Monday, longtime morning anchor Sashem Brey will be joining Lee Conklin at the anchor desk for the ABC affiliate’s 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. newscasts.

Claire Mitchell will join James Starks for Action News Good Morning on the weekdays. Alexandria Manthey will anchor Action News Good Morning on the weekends.

Lee Conklin will continue anchoring Action News at 5:00, 5:30, 6:00, and 11:00 p.m. Kristian Brown will continue anchoring Action News at 5:30, 7:00, and 11:00 p.m.

Christina Williams will continue anchoring Action News at Noon and 4:00 p.m.

Tony Geftos will continue anchoring Action News at 4:00 p.m. and Action News on CW13 at 10:00 p.m. Gerald Harris will also continue with Action News on CW13 at 10:00 p.m.

Josh Croup will continue anchoring Action News at 6:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. on the weekends.

“The anchor lineup will continue the tradition of excellence that WTVG is known for and our viewers have relied on for so many years,” said news director Dave Kaplar. “We’re fortunate to have so many experienced journalists in our newsroom who truly care about and are invested in the Toledo community.”

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are reuniting for a Super Bowl, and Michael Strahan’s presence won’t spoil it, for once.

Strahan’s SMAC Entertainment is teaming up with Fox Sports Films, BZ Entertainment and NFL Films on a pre-Super Bowl special, “The Madden Cruiser: A Bayou Adventure With Bill Belichick.”

Airing at 12pm ET ahead of Fox’s Super Bowl 59 broadcast, the special follows the famed NFL coach (and newly minted University of North Carolina leader) as he takes late broadcaster and coach John Madden’s namesake bus throughout Louisiana before pulling into New Orleans for the Big Game.

Brady and Belichick won their first Super Bowl together in New Orleans back in 2001 with a comeback win against the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl 37. 

But the two haven’t worked together in a professional capacity since then-quarterback Brady left his then-coach Belichick’s New England Patriots in 2018 after 17 seasons and six Super Bowl titles together.

The two haven’t spent a Super Bowl with Strahan, meanwhile, since the New York Giants ended the Patriots’ bid for an undefeated season by winning Super Bowl 42.

Now with Fox Sports, Strahan’s making it up to his new broadcast colleague Brady by having him and fellow broadcaster Curt Menefee as guests during Belichick’s tour of Louisiana football, food, and familiar faces.

Other guests along the way will include:

• Ed Reed: The Hall of Fame safety who both grew up in New Orleans and won a Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens during the game’s last stop at the city’s Superdome in 2013…when the lights went out
• Ty Law: The Hall of Fame cornerback who won three Super Bowls (2002, 2004, 2005) with Brady and Belichick’s Patriots and played in two Super Bowls (1997 and 2002) in New Orleans
• Archie Manning: A two-time Pro Bowler and New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame inductee who unleashed his sons Peyton and Eli on the world
• Tyrann Mathieu: Known to some as “The Honey Badger,” the New Orleans high school star and New Orleans Saints safety is going back to his high school to give a pregame speech to its football team
• Rocsi Diaz: Emmy-award-winning host, model, actress and New Orleans native visits revisits the city’s Ninth Ward almost 20 year after Hurricane Katrina

“To be able to bring these incredible legends and sports personalities together for this special sets the perfect stage for our presentation of Super Bowl LIX,” said Barry Nugent, vp of development and original programming for Fox Sports.

A TikTok ban appears imminent, and members of TikTok’s thriving communities, like #BookTok, #PerfumeTok, and #MovieTok, will need to find new platforms to connect.

BookTok is not just a thriving community, but a space where people can build careers. For example, Eli Rallo is a published author who gained popularity on TikTok along with creator Kierra Lewis, who has partnered with Audible and Starz from her viral book content. According to Forbes, since the rise of #BookTok in 2020, bookstores like Barnes & Noble have seen a 14% increase in sales.

“A ban would likely push a significant number of consumers who’ve discovered their passion for reading on this platform to seek alternative online spaces for community, book recommendations and to engage with other readers,” said Ian Morris, CEO and co-founder of recommendation platform Likewise, about the impact of #BookTok’s creators and followers if TikTok would take place.

As the potential ban becomes more serious, creators from these communities are turning to other platforms like YouTube and Instagram to maintain their connections and reach new audiences. With YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels regularly updating their features to cater to short-form content creators, both platforms are positioning themselves as alternatives to TikTok.

@elirallo

♬ original sound – Eli Rallo

Reddit, Substack, YouTube, and Instagram

Substack and Reddit are good options for creators who are part of specific subgroups and want to engage in meaningful discussions, said Julianne Fraser, founder and CEO of the influencer marketing company Dialogue New York. These platforms have smaller communities compared to TikTok, “but are great ways to diversify and test new audiences.”

YouTube and Instagram have attractive tools for creators or community members of #FragranceTok and #BookTok, said Kelly Ayres, the director of SEO at Jordan Digital Marketing. For instance, Stories offer interactive features like polls and Q&As, and carousel posts are ideal for sharing reviews and recommendations.

And YouTube has an advantage over the other platforms for these communities by offering both short—and long-form content options.

“Creators can easily transition by repurposing their existing TikTok videos for YouTube Shorts while also creating more detailed content, such as in-depth reviews or tutorials,” said Ayres.

As of December, #BookTok has more than 42.2 million posts on TikTok. It has inspired readers to share how a book has impacted them, improved discovery, and contributed to the resurgence of physical bookstores.

Morris said the community played a role in the success of authors such as Colleen Hoover, known for her hit book and movie It Ends With Us, and Taylor Jenkins Reid, whose novel The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is being adapted by Netflix.

@kellyclarksonshow #booktok just gained a new member! @Kierra Lewis #fourthwing #kellyclarkson ♬ original sound – Kelly Clarkson Show

Communities like #BookTok let smaller brands reach global audiences, which is more challenging on other social media platforms, said Samantha Hicks, managing director of talent agency Shine Talent Group.

“These groups, which don’t exist elsewhere, create organic, community-driven reviews in comments, amplifying products like Byredo fragrances nd local spots while giving smaller brands global reach,” said Hicks. For example, creator Paul Fino’s content on TikTok finding new and unique fragrances many may not have heard about without #PerfumeTok.

But communities rarely overlap platforms

To keep their audience informed and engaged, creators are increasingly sharing information about other platforms where they can be found to keep their followers.

However, for communities like #BookTok and #MovieTok, this has its challenges.

“Communities generally do not overlap across platforms,” said Fraser. “Pinterest, for example, offers a strong alternative for #BookTok given its functionality as a search engine rather than solely a social network.”

Fraser also noted that creators of niche communities can diversify their content by encouraging followers to access exclusive material on platforms like Patreon and by connecting with audiences across multiple platforms.

Due to the fluctuations of social media platforms, creators are increasingly looking for ways to connect directly with audiences by launching blogs, websites, or newsletters.

“More creators are recognizing the importance of ‘owning your audience’ and have made moves to drive followers to newsletters or other more private community spaces,” said Natalie Silverstein, chief innovation officer at Collectively.

Volvo is shaking up its media agency roster for the first time in 25 years.

IPG Mediabrands’ Initiative has won Volvo’s global media review, ADWEEK has learned.

The account spans all regions outside of China, with key markets including the U.S., U.K., Germany, Sweden, Japan, Australia, Korea. Work will begin in 2025 after a brief transition period, according to sources, Volvo confirmed.

“We regularly evaluate our agency model and operations to ensure we are equipped with the right technologies, agility, and efficiency,” a Volvo spokesperson said. “We have appointed Initiative, powered by IPG, to lead our media strategy, planning and buying, in all regions with the exception of China. Together, we will build on the strong foundation of our brand, delivering a seamless, premium and integrated experience for our consumers worldwide.”

Initiative declined to comment.

The win is a blow to the incumbent, WPP’s Mindshare, which has held the account in various markets for the past 25 years.

Volvo’s media spend is roughly $500 million, according to COMvergence.

The review for the automaker’s global media planning and buying business kicked off in August. The pitch was run by MediaSense.

Earlier in December, Campaign reported that the pitch had been narrowed down to three potential winners: IPG, WPP, and Publicis.

The win for Initiative comes weeks after IPG announced it would be acquired by Omnicom. It’s not clear how the combined entities’ media departments will factor into the way the Volvo account is staffed and managed, or whether news of the acquisition influenced the appointment.

Volvo reported a 12% decline in net sales (7% adjusted for currency) globally in its most recent earnings report, as consumers deal with ongoing inflation and economic uncertainty.

KOLD anchor Ana Orsini has died. She was 28.

“Last week, we lost a beloved member of our KOLD news team. Ana Orsini was our anchor, a leader of the morning team, and most importantly a great friend to so many at the station. I had the pleasure of working with her during the morning,” co anchor Cory Kowitz wrote on social media. “Rest in peace Ana.”

Orsini started working at the station in June 2023. She started her career in Lubbock, Texas in 2018.

There’s no word on the cause of death.

Veteran Buffalo anchor Don Postles is retiring at the end of the month. He’s anchored at the Buffalo, N.Y. CBS affiliate WIVB for 32 years.

“We wish him and his family all the best, and a long and healthy retirement,” said general manager Joe Abouzeid.

Postles started working at the station in 1993.

Congressman Tim Kennedy thanked Postles on behalf of residents of Buffalo and all of Western New York.

“Buffalonians have come to trust Don Postles’ voice as one of honesty and integrity, guiding us through our highest of highs and lowest of lows,” Kennedy said on the House floor. “His dedication and hard work leave behind an inspiring example for the next generation of journalists to follow.”

“We wish him and his family all the best, and a long and healthy retirement,” said General Manager Joe Abouzeid in a statement.

On the House floor, Congressman Tim Kennedy thanked Postles on behalf of residents of Buffalo and all of Western New York.

“Buffalonians have come to trust Don Postles’ voice as one of honesty and integrity, guiding us through our highest of highs and lowest of lows,” Kennedy said. “His dedication and hard work leave behind an inspiring example for the next generation of journalists to follow.”

Scoops Ahoy’s “U.S.S. Butterscotch” flavor chills in a Walmart freezer. Puma’s website sells Squid Game uniforms. In New York City, Queen Charlotte leads a grand regency ball.

No, you haven’t entered the Upside Down: Netflix’s IPs are everywhere—and it’s not a happy coincidence.

The streamer is gearing up to give Disney and Universal a run for their money with Netflix House, a 100,000-square feet themed entertainment complex that will include dining pitstops, gift shops, and immersive experiences tied to hit shows including Stranger Things and Bridgerton. The first two locations will open in King of Prussia, PA, and Dallas, TX in 2025.

In preparation, Netflix has spent 2024 making sure the world knows entertainment, not streaming, is its core product. Physical launches and live events have been at the heart of this strategy, led by Josh Simon, Netflix’s vp of consumer products and experiences.

He’s all too aware that some of Netflix’s peers have broad IP portfolios that have been around for “50 or more years,” but he doesn’t necessarily see that as a disadvantage for Netflix.

“We’re largely working with brand new worlds and stories and characters. We’re creating things from scratch. That gives us a lot of freedom to think differently,” he told ADWEEK.

He added that he views Netflix House as a way to extend the platform’s storytelling, noting Netflix worked with showrunners and leaned into viewership data to determine which experiences fans would get most excited about.

Netflix House is more than a brand-building exercise, and its shows. It’s also a way of giving fans moments to engage with worlds and characters they love year-round, said Simon.

Of course, the more these experiences engage fans, the more they can drive buzz and viewership, bolstering Netflix’s 282.7 million global subscriber base.

“Revenue is obviously another important measure,” Simon continued. “We work with retail partners and we put these products on shelves around the world, obviously they’re interested in [revenue] and we are too.”

Simon, who leads teams in the U.S., Europe, Asia Pacific, and Latin America, declined to confirm how much the consumer goods division has grown over the last 12 months, share or any specific financials. However, he said product partnerships have been generating “decent revenue” for all parties involved.

Worldbuilding off-screen

Merch and licensing launched in the last year have included careful collaborations with handpicked retailers. Recently, brands like Crocs, Johnnie Walker, and Puma released products themed around the impending second season of the Korean-language thriller Squid Game.

Stranger Things has also collaborated with Pandora on a jewelry collection designed by fans featuring glow-in-the-dark charms. Elsewhere, British shoe brand Clarks Originals launched five pairs of shoes that take inspiration from the show’s locations, characters, and events ahead of its fifth run.

Over the past two years, under CMO Marian Lee, Netflix has moved its $2.5 billion ad spend away from platform-centric campaigns and toward work rooted in championing the brand’s shows and their cultural clout. This has spilled out into the real world via “the Netflix effect,” where shows like Bridgerton and The Queen’s Gambit are driving consumer purchases.

Leaning into this, Netflix has also brought fictional products and brands from its series to supermarket shelves, including Scoops Ahoy, a homage to Stranger Things’ nautical-themed ice cream parlor.

“Globally, that’s been very successful,” said Simon. “The rich creative, nostalgia-driven world of that show has given us such a strong creative hook.”

Netflix has opened more than 50 live experiences in 100 different cities over the last 12 months, including The Queen’s Ball Bridgerton and Stranger Things: The First Shadow, an Olivier-award-winning play in London’s West End.

Squid Game: The Experience, co-created by Superfly, also opened in New York City in October. It consisted of five challenges inspired by the show, with tickets for the experience starting at $29.

“We really obsess over the details of the set design, the stories, the characters,” Simon said. “People get so passionate about their favorite movies and TV shows that we don’t want to let them down when they walk in the door.”

Combined, Netflix’s 2024 immersive experiences have welcomed 7.5 million fans.

Chelito Rubio, strategy director at Saffron Brand Consultants, said that as Netflix’s subscriber base starts to plateau, these events make sense from a growth perspective. She likens the strategy to Airbnb’s pivot from accommodation to travel-based experiences.

“Watching a series is inherently passive, but by creating these experiences it allows Netflix to transform from a content platform into a social platform,” she said, noting that challenges could arise if fan expectations aren’t met.

“The backlash would be brutal,” she added. “If Netflix isn’t careful, it could dilute the brand and the expectations of the magic it will bring. Disney succeeds because it pours everything into creating magical experiences. Netflix should be prepared to do the same if it wants this to be a real success. You can’t half-ass the magic.”

No place like home

Netflix House certainly won’t be done by halves, bringing elements of all these experiences under one roof.

“It will allow us to build all of these immersive worlds that play off of each other,” said Simon.

He said Netflix is building the project with “flexibility” in mind to accommodate for future shows that might take on a “crazy life of their own,” as Stranger Things has done.

“We’ve built the infrastructure that allows us to exercise our creativity when it comes to storytelling, but also refresh it pretty regularly, whether that means the menu at the restaurant, the products in the retail store, or the experiences.” All this can be tailored based on what fans are talking about and sharing online.

It has yet to announce where Netflix House might pop up yet. “We’re very global in nature,” Simon said. “We’re figuring out where comes next.”

David Ushery will co-anchor WNBC News 4 New York at 6 starting on Monday, December 16.

He takes over for Chuck Scarborough, who will retire from the New York NBC-owned station on December 12. Scarborough held the role as evening anchor for more than 50 years.

Ushery will continue in his current role as co-anchor of the 4 and 11 p.m. newscasts alongside Natalie Pasquarella, his new 6 p.m. co-anchor.

”°David is the real thing. He is an excellent writer, a terrific reporter and an outstanding anchor who is at his best when news is breaking and there is no script. He is also committed to helping others and regularly spends time in our communities across the Tri-State,” said Eric Lerner, president and general manager. ”David is the perfect choice for our 6 PM newscast and will continue WNBC” tradition of excellence.”

”°For more than 20 years, covering everything from tragedies to triumphs, David has proven he can do it all,” said Amy Morris, senior vice president of News for NBC 4 New York and Telemundo 47. ”Ush, as he’s known in the newsroom, is an innovative journalist who connects with audiences on any platform. He’s a critical talent as News 4 New York continues to evolve and build for the future.”

Ushery is a member of the New York State Broadcasters Hall of Fame and the Silver Circle for the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, New York Chapter. In addition to the Columbia-duPont award, Ushery has been honored with two National Edward R. Murrow Awards for WNBC’s October 2012 coverage of Superstorm Sandy and December 2019 coverage of the deadly Jersey City shootout. His work on Superstorm Sandy was also recognized with a National Emmy Award. 

”In a time when the media industry is evolving on a near-daily basis, our responsibility as local journalists will never change: to verify the facts, to ask the tough questions and to deliver the news in a clear, honest and transparent manner worthy of our viewers trust,” said Ushery. ”That is exactly what we do at WNBC and for more than 20 years, I have been privileged to work alongside some of the finest journalists in our business right here at 30 Rock. I look forward to continuing this important mission every weeknight at 6 PM with my colleagues and friends Natalie Pasquarella, Janice Huff and Bruce Beck.”

Click here to view the on-air announcement.

In only its second year hosting the NFL Black Friday game, Amazon has had no problem staying on offense and moving forward.

Drawing 13.51 million viewers to see the Kansas City Chiefs eke out a 19-17 win over the Las Vegas Raiders—and increasing its audience 41% from the roughly 9 million who watched the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins last year—Amazon spread the field for Black Friday advertisers in 2024. They appreciated the effort, with 30% more brands airing interactive ads in the company’s Prime Video stream than in 2023.

Mazda signed on for Amazon’s Black Friday pre-kick show, Uber Eats took kickoff duties, and Amazon’s team of advertisers expanded to include Google Pixel, Solo Stove, Ralph Lauren Fragrances, and Microsoft. More than 40% of its advertisers were new to the Black Friday game, and 20% of them debuted ads created specifically for the event.

Fans approved. 

The flood of new holiday viewers led to clicks, as engagement with interactive ads increased 10% from last year, according to Amazon’s click/scan rates.

“Prime Video’s leaned-in audience came ready to engage with our Black Friday advertisers through clicks, scans, and search, which resulted in our highest customer engagement on record,” said Danielle Carney, head of live sports and video sales for Amazon Ads.

It was also a learning experience for Amazon, which noted some meaningful shifts in how fans watched and shopped the game from year to year. According to its own data, interactive ads were 11 times more effective in drawing fans’ interest than QR codes aired during the Black Friday game. 

Amazon also noted that brands that targeted interactive ads to specific audiences saw 200% higher search rates on Google compared to brands that opted against interactive ads and audience-based creative. Finally, according to Google data from television data firm EDO, Amazon’s Black Friday game viewership was more than 51% more likely to search for brands and products advertised during that day’s game than viewers of ads that ran during NFL Thanksgiving games.

“The Black Friday game is changing consumer behaviors for both fans and advertisers as a new sports holiday on one of the biggest shopping days,” Carney said.