Media properties overtake software tools in creator economy M&A for first time

Creator economy M&A hit a record 70 deals in the first half of 2026, up 23% year over year, with media properties overtaking software tools as the most-acquired asset class for the first time since tracking began, accounting for 27.1% of transactions against software's 24.3%, according to Quartermast Advisors.

The flip matters more than the volume. For years, the strategic bet in the creator economy ran through infrastructure: scheduling tools, analytics platforms, campaign management software. Buyers are no longer primarily buying the instruments of creation; they are buying the creation itself and the audiences attached to it.

OpenAI's acquisition of tech and business media network TBPN for an estimated $100 million or more signals the shift: the company is buying a specific, technically literate audience attached to a media brand that runs on trust. HubSpot's acquisitions of Futurepedia and Starter Story follow the same logic. CRM software buying media channels because the media channels reach the exact buyers the software wants to sell to.

Why software fell from the top

AI has created a structural ceiling for software tools. As large language models and AI-assisted development tools continue lowering the cost and time required to build a functional SaaS product, the defensibility of any given software tool erodes. When the barrier to replication drops, so does the strategic multiple.

A scheduling platform that took two years to build in 2018 can be approximated in weeks today. That compression narrows the premium an acquirer can justify paying. Software consistently led all acquisition categories between 2024 and 2025, peaking at 25.9% of deals. That logic has not disappeared, but it has run into a ceiling that the H1 2026 data now makes legible.

Media properties face a different calculus. An owned audience, a community built around a specific creator, a content format, or a recurring relationship, cannot be downloaded, replicated, or built in a sprint.

Media properties traded at 2.0x to 10.0x EBITDA in H1 2026, with premium assets anchored to four or more revenue streams. Software is priced on annual recurring revenue multiples of 2.0x to 12.0x, with the upper range reserved for companies with exceptional net revenue retention. At the top end of the market, the ceiling for a well-positioned media property now looks approximately as high as the ceiling for a well-positioned software company, but the floor is more defensible.

The top five deals and what they reveal

The top five H1 2026 deals based on reported value: eBay acquires Depop from Etsy for $1.2 billion (February 18), Netflix acquires InterPositive for up to $600 million (March 5), Accenture Song acquires Whalar for an estimated $500 million-plus (June 8), James Murdoch's Lupa Systems acquires Vox.com, New York magazine and the Vox Media Podcast Network for more than $300 million (May 20), and Byron Allen acquires a controlling stake in BuzzFeed for $120 million (May 11).

What's notable is how few of these are for pure software or creator tools.

eBay acquired Depop from Etsy for $400 million less than Etsy paid in 2021. What eBay is buying is a platform with 56.3 million users as of 2026 and a user base that has deepened its integration with creator culture in ways that align closely with eBay's recommitment to collectibles and fashion resale.

Netflix's acquisition of InterPositive could be worth up to $600 million according to Bloomberg, potentially ranking it among the streaming giant's largest acquisitions ever. The actual cash payment may be lower, with the owners eligible for additional payouts tied to specific performance targets. InterPositive develops AI-powered tools built by and for filmmakers. Netflix is bringing InterPositive's entire team into the company and Ben Affleck is joining as Senior Advisor.

Accenture agreed to acquire Whalar, a leading creator and social agency, from Whalar Group on June 8. Whalar will become part of Accenture Song, adding scaled creator and influencer engagement to its customer growth capabilities. Whalar Group described it to AdWeek as the largest creator economy transaction. Publicis Groupe's 2024 acquisition of Influential was pegged at around $500 million.

Lupa Systems agreed to acquire New York Magazine, the Vox Media Podcast Network and the news site Vox from Vox Media. The deal values the assets at around $300 million.

Who's buying and why now

One of the clearest signals of market maturity in the H1 2026 data is the arrival of buyers with no prior creator economy footprint. eBay and Cloudflare entering the creator economy buyer pool signals the same thing: the creator economy has become large enough and mature enough that companies with no prior history in the space are willing to pay strategic prices.

The broader context strengthens the case for buying audiences. The creator economy is projected to hit $235 billion in 2026. Companies in the space are growing and maturing, according to Quartermast founder James Creech.

California alone drove 21 acquisitions in H1 2026, more than any other state and more than the rest of the U.S. combined. The capital is following the talent density.

What this means for social media professionals

If you're building a creator business, the H1 2026 data carries a clear signal: What is worth owning at the current moment of maturity is not the tool that helps a creator reach an audience. It is the audience itself and the human relationships that built it.

For agencies and talent managers, the trend is consolidation. Independent agencies face pressure. Jennifer Quigley-Jones, who sold her creator agency Digital Voices to performance marketing firm PMG in January 2026, described it directly: the space for independent agencies is being squeezed. Brands are seeing stronger results from integrating media and influencer. They need tech and scale.

For platforms and software builders, the message is harder. Build something AI cannot easily replicate, or accept that your strategic premium will compress. Software companies with exceptional net revenue retention command the upper range of multiples, but increasingly require a differentiated product that AI cannot easily replicate.

For anyone trying to understand where the money is moving: Audience relationships compound over time. Feature sets get copied in quarters. The buyers putting down the largest cheques in 2026 understand that distinction and are acting on it.

Quartermast projects the full-year 2026 total will exceed 100 deals, which would represent the most active year the sector has ever recorded, well ahead of the 87 transactions completed in all of 2025. The question the second half will begin to answer is whether the shift from software to media as the primary acquisition category represents a temporary preference or a permanent reordering. If AI continues commoditizing software tools at its current pace, the structural argument for media's superior defensibility only strengthens.