Stagwell buys Freestar, putting publisher ad sales inside a holdco
Digiday ·
Publishers have long wished agencies would put their money where their panel talking points are. Stagwell has done something adjacent, buying Freestar, the company that helps the likes of Fortune and Boston Globe Media sell their inventory.
The independent holdco announced the deal today (Oct. 26) and is putting Freestar inside Owned Media, a unit that has picked up pace since Stagwell gave it a CEO in February. Ink, the travel publisher, and airport network ReachTV, are among the handful of properties there that will now lean on Freestar to run their programmatic sales. Freestar’s own publisher clients out of it with something too, namely a shorter path to the advertisers and tools Stagwell has across its network.
“Publishers are essential to a healthy media ecosystem, and we believe that their long-term success is critical to the future of our industry,” said Ben Berenstone, CEO of Owned Media, Stagwell. “Freestar has built an exceptional global business helping publishers increase revenue and improve operational efficiency in a complex programmatic landscape. Together, we’ll continue investing in that mission, while bringing new capabilities to support their growth and their clients.”
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