RockWater Roundup

M&A analysis of the creator economy to make you a better operator and investor.

Today we discuss TCG’s investment in Audiochuck, including the deal details, strategic rationale, valuation estimate, podcast M&A momentum, and the continued attractiveness of the true crime media market.

Let’s break it down…

————

–TARGET: Audiochuck–

Overview

• Podcast networking specializing in true crime and mystery
• Founded 2017 by Ashley Flowers (also host of flagship Crime Junkie)
• 20 weekly and seasonal shows
• Based in Indianapolis
• 65 FT employees

Business Lines

• Creates podcast content incl Crime Junkie, The Deck, Park Predators
• Recently announced Crime Junkie: Life Rule #10 tour, will visit 18 cities
• NY Times best-seller novel All Good People Here 
• Developing several film / TV Projects
• Fan Club subscription app

Company Highlights

• Crime Junkie, #1 Show on Apple Podcasts (#2 overall) 
  • $45M annual profit (per Bloomberg)
  • 6M listeners
• 4 year deal with SiriusXM for exclusive ad sales on Crime Junkie
  • Audiochuck is SiriusXM’s largest network across all genres
• 2023 Adweek’s Podcast Network of the Year
• Donated $8.5M to 150 nonprofits
• Flowers committed $11M to helping families and investigative agencies solve violent crime cold cases, via her foundation Season of Justice

Capital Markets History

• 2025: $40M Minority Investment by TCG

–INVESTOR: The Chernin Group (TCG)–

Overview

• Growth equity firm investing in sports and media
• Founded in 2010 by Jesse Jacobs and Peter Chernin
  • Started as holdco to acquire and operate D2C media / tech brands
  • 2015: hired Mike Kerns, former senior exec at Yahoo!
  • 2018: Kerns, Jacobs, and Chernin formally formed TCG as a PE firm 
• 33 employees 
• Based in LA

Company Highlights

• Focus on creator-driven media brands and emerging media platforms
• Cofounder Peter Chernin also founded and Runs North Road, which houses his various studio and prod co ventures incl Chernin Entertainment, w/ credits including Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Ford vs. Ferrari
  • Raised hundreds of millions of private equity and debt in 2022 to
• Builds upon Chernin’s previous experience in media as CEO of Fox Group, where he greenlit Avatar and Titanic

Investment Criteria

• Focused on media, entertainment, tech, sports, consumer, and digital sectors
• Equity investment size of $25 – 75M 
• Past 5 Years: 
  • Even # of deals between Investments and Buyouts 
  • Primarily focused on EU and US investments / acquisitions

Capital Markets History

• Closed a flagship $1.3B fund in July 2022
• Raised $700M in November 2019
• Raised $200M in April 2012

Select TCG Media Portfolio

• Night Talent Management
• Surfline (link to my article here)
• Exploding Kittens (link to my article here)
• Professional Lacrosse League
• Hello Sunshine
• Epic Gardening
• Cars & Bids
• MeatEater
• Substack
• Food52
• Twitter
• Cameo
• Funko
• Vuori

2024-2025 Investments

–DEAL DETAILS–

Overview

• Announced 2.23.25
• $40M investment
• $250M company valuation 
• Implied ~16% ownership stake

Post Deal Ops

• Not disclosed
  

Strategic Rationale

• Double team to ~130, build out new business lines incl film and TV division
• Launch more network shows; take advantage of competitive, but large and still growing true crime podcast space
• Hire a professional CEO to focus on ops, so Flowers can focus on content and not have company so dependent on her
• Expand philanthropic efforts for “bigger impact on the cases and social issues we champion”
• Expand production and office space, going from 10k to 30k square feet
• Expand live events lineup for Crime Junkie

–WHAT ELSE I FIND INTERESTING–

• Valuation estimate on reported EBITDA feels off. Bloomberg reports that Crime Junkie does about $45M in profit per year. Let’s use profit as a proxy for EBITDA.  Let’s also use the 80/20 rule to assume that the flagship show, out of a network of 20, makes up 80% of company profit. That implies $56M of total company profit. At a $250M valuation per Bloomberg, that’s a 4.5x EBITDA multiple. My immediate reaction is that the valuation multiple feels very low, and makes me think that the $45M reported profit figure, or valuation, isn’t accurate. Other podcast deals over the last 6 months were done at significantly higher valuation multiples, yet Audiochuck is a premium scaled asset in the space so unsure why there’d be such a discount. Something feels off. Or, TCG got great investment terms, and Flowers is excited to be in business with the venerable media-focused fund. I’ll have to make some calls and do more digging on that one.

• Podcasting M&A is seeing new momentum (redux). I talked about this in my Fox / RSV analysis a couple weeks ago, which was another landmark podcast-focused deal. The Audiochuck and RSV deals follow 2024’s landmark acquisition of Veritone ONE and Oxford Road by Insignia Capital for $100M+ (our deal analysis), and also Acast’s acquisition of Wonder Media Network in Dec 2024. Like the creator economy, podcasting is heating up after a down period in dealmaking between summer 2022 through Q3 2024. Our team does M&A and strategy advisory in audio, and based on the financial performance we’re seeing in a few P&Ls, the future looks bright for high performers in the podcast and creator industries.

• Audiochuck’s team expansion plans, and implications for SiriusXM partnership. The size of the investment, team expansion plans, the SiriusXM relationship make me think of another dynamic that could be at play. The insight is Inspired by MrBeast’s decision to exit its longstanding exclusive sales partnership with Night –> could Audiochuck seek to build out / expand its own ad sales and brand partnerships team, which could then cause the company to exit its exclusive SiriusXM ad sales partnership, which I believe terminates by the end of 2025? If so, the company’s goal would be keep more margin from ad sales, and also have more control of brand marketer relationships and how they’re activated across the overall Audiochuck portfolio. This is a dynamic that is constantly discussed at media co’s — when is the right time to re-think an ad sales partnership with a 3rd party and consider a build or buy strategy. This theme aligns with the M&A trends we cover on our deal blog. Curious to see how this shakes out.

• A good quote from Deadline: “The number of true crime weekly listeners has reached 19 million, surpassing sports and news as the third largest category in podcasts. With an audience median age of 34, the podcasts draw a more diverse and increasingly female set of listeners.” Audiochuck has strong demographic concentration among 25-40 year old women, and is clearly building where the opportunity is. Also explains why RSV launched CrimeCon, a business that is consistenly growing YoY. Building in large and growing addressable markets is attractive to investors, if you can stand out from the competition and actually make money (burning a lot of cash to build market share in creator x media is very pre 2022, and out of vogue). Focus on profit, people. This should always be the mantra.

• Highlights from recent podcast market data. 1B+ people a month view podcast content on YouTube, making it the largest podcast platform in the world. On Spotify, the number of users watching video podcasts grew 40% YoY, and the number of podcasters publishing videos on Spotify grew 70% YoY. SiriusXM added 149K subscribers at the end of 2024 and is exploring expanding its podcast subscription to Spotify, YouTube Music, and other platforms.

• This deal makes me think about next steps for MrBallen and Ballen Studios. His studio operates in a similar space and has a similar business model and philanthropic mandate. I’m going to spend more time understanding his business. Just not today, I’m out of time…

I’m the founder of RockWater Industries. We do M&A and strategy advisory for creator economy and digital agencies. From buy / sell-side M&A and fundraising, to consumer research and go-to-market planning.

DM me on LinkedIn or email me chris @ wearerockwater dot com

RockWater Roundup

M&A analysis of the creator economy to make you a better operator and investor.

Today we discuss Audioboom’s acquisition of Adelicous, a British podcast network and monetization platform. We cover deal details, strategic rationale, revenue and EBITDA valuation multiples, Audioboom financial performance, and the rise in 2025 podcast M&A.

Let’s break it down…

————

–TARGET: Adelicious–

Overview

• British podcast network and monetization platform for professional podcasters
• Founded in 2020 by Pascal Hughes and David McGuire as invite-only network
• Built “by podcasters for podcasters”
• Home to 200+ leading podcasts including Russell Howard’s Five Brilliant Things, The Teen Commandments with Sara Cox and Clare Hamilton, and History Extra
• HQ’d in Bristol and London, UK
• 12 FT employees

Company Highlights

• Monthly audience of 20M downloads and views
• Network listens increased 314% YoY in 2023
• Delivered 1B ad impressions since 2020

Business Lines

• Premium Podcast Hosting & Monetization: Invite-only network providing hosting, advertising sales, and revenue optimization for premium podcast content
• Brand Partnership Services: Custom promotional campaign packages via direct advertiser relationships with high-profile brands including Amex, Airbnb, Fever Tree, Virgin Atlantic, Peloton, Warner Bros, Slack

Capital Markets History

• Jul ’25: Acquired by Audioboom for up to £10M

Financials:

(via deal press release)

• FY 2025F Revenue: $7.6M, Up 58% YoY
• FY 2025F EBITDA: $0.7M
• FY 2024 Revenue: $4.8M, Up 12% YoY
• FY 2024 EBITDA: $0M
• FY 2023 Revenue: $4.3M
• FY 2023 EBITDA: ($0.1M)

–BUYER: Audioboom–

Overview

• Global podcast company providing ad-tech and monetization platform
• Operates internationally with distribution across Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, etc
• Founded in 2009 by Mark Rock, evolved from music social networking to podcast-focused platform
• Publicly traded on London AIM: BOOM
• 51+ FT Employees
• Based in NY and UK

Company Highlights

• 100M monthly downloads by 35-38M unique listeners worldwide in Q2 2025
• Premium British podcast roster includes No Such Thing As A Fish, Dig It with Zoe Ball and Jo Whiley, Beyond The Grid (Formula 1), and The Cycling Podcast
• Key US partnerships include True Crime Obsessed, The Tim Dillon Show
• Global operations across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia

Business Lines

• Premium: Direct sales to brand advertisers
• Showcase Marketplace: Tech-based global advertising marketplace, fastest-growing segment
• Sonic Integrated Marketing: Managed services for select brands

Stock Price

• £335 as of 7.21.25
• Down 7.6% MoM
• Up 34% YoY

Financials:

(via public filings and stockanalysis.com)

• FY 2024 Revenue: $73.4M
• FY 2024 EBITDA: $1.1M
• FY 2024 EBITDA Margin: 1.5%
• H1 2025 Revenue: $35.1M
• H1 2024 Revenue: $34.1M
• Up 3% YoY
• H1 2025 EBITDA: $1.8M
• H1 2024 EBITDA: $0.3M
• Up 500% YoY

Valuation

• Key data (GBP converted to USD)…
• Mkt Cap: $71.4M
• C&CE: $2.6M
• Total Debt: $0.9M
• Enterprise Value: $69.9M

• Enterprise Value Multiples…
• 2024 Revenue: 1.0x 
• 2024 EBITDA: 65.3x 
• LTM Jun 2025 Revenue: 0.9x
• LTM Jun 2025 EBITDA: 27.2x
• H2 EBITDA: 0.8M

Capital Markets History

• Jul’25: Acquired Adelicious for up to £10M
• Jul’25:  Raised £3M in PIPE funding (sold 1.1M shares to new and existing investors to fund Adelicious purchase)
• Apr’17: Went public on LSE under ticker BOOM, 18% of company sold
• Apr’17:  Raised £0.5M in PIPE funding led by Edge Investments 
• Mar’17:  Raised £4M in PIPE funding
• Aug’16:  Raised £2.5M in PIPE funding
• Aug’16: Acquired SONR News for £1.9M

–DEAL DETAILS–

Overview

• Announced July 16, 2025
• £10M total maximum consideration
• 100% buyout 

Deal Structure

• £10M total maximum consideration
• £4.5M initial consideration (45% of total)…
• 60% cash (£2.7M)
• 40% new Audioboom shares (£1.8M)
• £3.0M deferred consideration…
• Performance based tied to FY25 revenue targets
• £2.5M contingent consideration…
• Tied to revenue performance of the SMA (Sh**ged. Married. Annoyed.) podcast contract 

Deal Valuation

• 𝗡𝗼 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗼𝘂𝘁 (£4.5M)…
• FY 2024 revenue: 1.3x
• FY 2025F revenue: 0.8x
• FY 2025F EBITDA: 8.7x

• 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗹 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗼𝘂𝘁 (£10M)…
• FY 2024 revenue: 2.8x
• FY 2025F revenue: 1.8x
• FY 2025F EBITDA: 19.4x

Strategic Rationale

• Market Consolidation & Geographic Expansion: Positions Audioboom as consolidator in fragmented UK market where per-capita podcast ad spend is $1.60 vs. $7.00 in US
• Revenue Synergies: Immediate access to Audiboom’s Showcase marketplace expected to boost Adelicious monetization
• Content Portfolio: Adds premium British content to complement existing Audioboom roster

Post-Deal Operations

• Andrew Goldsmith to become President of consolidated UK division under Adelicious brand and join Audioboom executive team
• 2 founders will not remain with company
• Adelicious to operate as distinct business unit with focus on business development and commercial operations
• Integration plan includes connecting Adelicious show and media inventory to Showcase marketplace within 30 days

–WHAT ELSE I FIND INTERESTING–

• Valuation multiples highlight a premium to market precedent, though the company may believe otherwise. There’s an interesting quote at Investing.com “The transaction represents an enterprise value to sales multiple of approximately 1.0x, compared to industry standard multiples of 3-4x, according to the company.” Let’s break that down, because I’m not sure our data support that.
• Our valuation analysis above, for just the upfront consideration portion of deal, shows the deal was done at 1.3x 2024 revenue. Since 2024 EBITDA was $0M, the multiple is NA. For 2025, or on a forward basis, the revenue and EBITDA multiples are 0.8x and 8.7x.
• As benchmarks, let’s review a few deals where there’s public data. Also of note, our M&A deal experience shows that most podcast advertising and agency sales businesses are valued on EBITDA multiples, and not revenue, unless perhaps the company is very high growth or has a unique reason for depressed EBITDA. Adelicious grew 12% YoY for 2024 and was about breakeven, though is forecast to grow revenue at 58% this year. This would still make me think most buyers in the space would compare the valuation on a EBITDA multiple basis.
• The deal benchmarks include Insignia’s $104M acquisition of Veritone ONE, which was 8.9x TTM EBITDA, and that was a significantly bigger company with higher EBITDA margins (our deal analysis). There’s also Moburst’s $700k acquisition of Kitcaster, with valuation multiples of 0.5x revenue and 3.5x EBITDA (our deal analysis), a smaller deal, but again with higher EBITDA margins. Lastly, I think of TCG’s $40M investment into Audiochuck, with an estimated EBITDA valuation estimate of 4.5x, which admittedly feels very low and I may be off. (our deal analysis).
• Thus, at a forward 8.7x EBITDA, the deal doesn’t feel low relative to the rest of the industry, but actually a premium. Also, our team doesn’t see most deals at 3-4x revenue in the current market; that would be very high for an agency services business, even a fast-growing one!
• The counterpoint to all of this is the expected revenue and cost synergy with Audioboom. If the buyer believes the deal will be immediately accretive (higher earnings per share post deal) and in a meaningful way, then paying a premium relative to market to win the deal and close quickly could make sense. This is particularly true for a target company that does about 10% of current Audioboom revenue, and where the upfront purchase price is under 10% of current enterprise value. Add on top of that the fact of UK’s still maturing podcast ad market and fragmentation, and there may be financial rationale to be aggressive here. Though to confirm, this doesn’t feel below market valuations 😉

• Majority of deal consideration is via earnout, with nearly half tied to specific show performance. The 55% earnout component (£5.5M of £10M total) is based on revenue performance milestones. Of that, £3M is tied to overall 2025 revenue growth, and £2.5M is tied to revenue performance of the SMA (Sh**ged. Married. Annoyed.) podcast contract. The structure incentivizes Adelicious team to drive growth during integration period, and protects Audioboom if financial performance and synergies don’t materialize.
• The SMA -specific earnout stands out – the show is one of the UK’s most popular podcasts, and signals how meaningful that show is to Adelicious financial growth, since it likely represents a very high revenue concentration within the Adelicious client portfolio. It wasn’t disclosed what the deal consideration is for the earnout portion i.e. is it just cash, or a mix of cash and stock similar to the mix for the upfront consideration in the deal e.g. 60% cash and 40% Audioboom shares. Most earnouts have a more meaningful cash component, but TBD the specifics here.
• Also of note, in most recent podcast deals, the founders and top management were kept on post acquisition. Like when Fox acquired RSV (our deal analysis), Moburst acquired Kitcaster, and Podx acquired Lemonada (our deal analysis). For this deal, we see Andrew Goldsmith from Adelicious leadership staying on with Audioboom in a more senior role, but the two founders are departing. Surprising considering the relatively small scale of the company in both revenue ($7M) and team size (12 employees), and significant 58% growth planned for 2025. I’d thus think keeping the founders on to help drive continued performance and also achieve earnout would be critical. But I don’t know the specific roles of each team member, and so perhaps the founder roles were redundant with Audioboom leadership, and their departures also create immediate cost synergies to lift EBITDA going forward.

• Fragmented US + UK market creates consolidation opportunities. The podcast market is highly fragmented, with over 100 independent networks generating 75% of US and UK revenue, while the top 10 networks take only 25%. This fragmentation complicates campaign execution across small networks but offers significant opportunities for acquirers like Audioboom to consolidate smaller players at attractive prices. 

• Growing UK podcast M&A activity. Both Audioboom and PodX’s recent moves show renewed international interest in the UK podcast market. Specifically in the UK, Podx bought Platform media for an 8-figure valuation in 2024 (our deal analysis), and Listen in 2023. The reason is that per-capita UK podcast ad spend is still significantly below the US ($1.60 vs $7.00), but that gap is narrowing. Networks like Adelicious bring premium content and audience scale that will benefit as UK podcast matures, recruits new advertisers and wins bigger budgets, and CPMs increase.

• 2025 podcast M&A momentum remains strong, with increased strategic buyer diversity. Major podcast deals are reshaping the 2025 market landscape. PodX spent $30M for Lemonada Media to break into the US market, while Moburst acquired both Kitcaster and Rhythm Communications to strengthen its US agency capabilities and client reach. Audioboom’s acquisition of Adelicious highlights how a growing array of companies, from public to private, and from podcast-native to non-endemics, are competing for a share of the global podcast ad spend market as it approaches $4.5B+ this year.

• The latest podcast acquisitions show a clear growth playbook. Platforms like Audioboom and PodX are focused on growing audiences, cross-selling content, and increasing adtech-driven revenue. With Adelicious, Audioboom can immediately plug new shows into its Showcase marketplace, widen UK sales, and use its technology to monetize the Adelicious portfolio more effectively. This mirrors PodX’s move to leverage Lemonada’s top talent in global sales and distribution channels for faster growth. The strategy is about rapid integration, leveraging audience scale, and improving portfolio monetization.

I’m the founder of RockWater Industries. We do M&A and strategy advisory for creator economy and digital agencies. From buy / sell-side M&A and fundraising, to consumer research and go-to-market planning.

DM me on LinkedIn or email me chris@wearerockwater.com

RockWater Roundup

M&A analysis of the creator economy to make you a better operator and investor.

Today we discuss PodX’s acquisition of Lemonada, a podcast network and creative studio with a goal to “make life suck less”. We analyze the deal details, strategic rationale, why PodX is expanding into the US, and growth of capital flows into podcasting.

Let’s break it down…

————

–TARGET: Lemonada–

Overview

• Podcast network and creative studio
• 50 original podcasts and 40 partner shows 
• Goal = “Make life suck less”
• Founded in 2019 by Jessica Cordova Kramer (CEO) and Stephanie Wittels Wachs (CCO)
• 79% female audience, 72% married or partnered
• 56 associated members on LinkedIn
• HQ’d in Minneapolis

Company Highlights

• Experienced “skyrocketing” revenue and audience growth in 2024
• Podcasts include Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Fail Better with David Duchovny, and Confessions of a Female Founder with Meghan Markle
• Produced multiple #1 Apple Podcasts charting shows including Wiser Than Me (29 days at #1 overall), Blind Plea and received Gracie and Webby Awards for acclaimed series like In the Bubble, Add to Cart, and BEING Trans
  

Business Lines

• Sells advertisements on podcasts and partner show content
• Promotes a book club, in co-development partnership with Gallery Books, a division of Simon & Schuster
• Has a D2C shop selling clothes, bags, and hats

Origin Story

• Both founders lost their brothers due to overdoses and connected over the question of “could we have done anything differently to save our brothers?”
• From there, the first Lemonada podcast was born, Webby Award-winning Last Day, where Wittels Wachs interviews folks about the last day of someone’s life

Capital Markets History

• May 2025 – Acquired by PodX
• Jan 2022 – $8M Series A by BDMI, Blue Collective, Flourish, Greycroft
• Feb 2021 – $1M seed by Blue Collective, Imaginable Future Services
• Jun 2020 – $1.5M pre-seed by Blue Collective
• Total funds raised: $10.5M

–BUYER: PodX–

Overview

• Global podcast investment and production studio
• Goal = be leading international audio content group
• Offers financing, biz dev, globalization, and commercialisation services to its portfolio
• Has podcast brands dedicated to different audience segments, interests, and geographies
• Founded in 2021 by Patrick Svensk (CEO), Staffan Rosell, Fredrik Said
• HQ’d in Stockholm, Sweden
• 15 associated members on LinkedIn 
• 10 audio companies under the PodX umbrella 

Capital Markets History

• 10 total acquisitions per Pitchbook
• Main shareholder of PodX is a Swedish family-owned investment group, Qarlbo AB
• QAB is also main investor behind Pophouse, which acquires IP rights for exploitation (KISS, ABBA, Avicii, Cyndi Lauper, Swedish House Mafia)

–DEAL DETAILS–

Overview

• Announced 5.6.25
• Bloomberg valued deal at $30M 
• Deal reportedly was for a “majority stake”

Post Deal Ops

• Lemonada’s management team will stay post acquisition
• Lemonada to retain the brand 

Strategic Rationale

• PodX’s first entry to US market, builds upon existing expansion in Europe and Latam, in support of vision to become global audio group
• PodX acquires celebrity-led podcasts and partner shows to unlock new global audiences and shift toward talent-driven IP 
• Lemonada to continue growing but now on a global scale with via PodX
• Lemonada brings over authentic storytelling approach to PodX portfolio companies

–WHAT ELSE I FIND INTERESTING–

• PodX’s official entry into the US podcast market. PodX has long positioned itself to become a global leader in audio storytelling. Its initial acquisitions focused on Europe and Latin America, where entry valuations were more attractive and competition was lower. While the US podcast market has always been appealing due to its scale and maturity, sellers’ high price expectations previously limited PodX’s activity in the region. With the gap closing between seller expectations and buyside mandates, PodX seized on the opportunity to acquire Lemonada and establish its US-based presence. We estimate that a meaningful portion of the deal consideration was in stock, making the transaction more attractive to PodX leadership. With this move, PodX has secured a foothold in the US market, which accounts for over half of global podcast ad revenue. We expect more US based deals to follow.

• Lemonada indexes heavily into celebrity-led podcasts and shows. Lemonada marks a new podcast M&A angle towards talent-driven IP. The deal gives PodX access to a roster of US creators and Hollywood talent with global appeal. By plugging Lemonada’s shows into PodX’s global distribution network, the new parent co can help unlock new audiences, grow ad and licensing revenue, and further position Lemonada as a premier destination for top-tier talent looking to scale their global reach.

• Podcasting is seeing a resurgence. Just last week we wrote about this in our analysis of Moburst’s acquisition of Kitcaster. Podcast ad spending worldwide is projected to hit $4.5 billion by 2025, and Hernan Lopez of Owl & Co estimates the size of the global podcast economy at $7.3B. Recent quarterly reports also show that audio platforms are experiencing growing podcast revenues. For example, iHeartMedia announced that their podcast revenue was up 28% YoY, SiriusXM added 149K subscribers at the end of 2024, and YouTube became the largest podcast platform in the world with more than 1B people a month viewing podcast content. For Spotify, the number of users watching video podcasts has grown by 40% YoY, and the number of podcasters publishing videos on Spotify has grown 70% YoY. Podcasting is becoming more mainstream and reaching more audiences, and in turn driving more ad sales and overall podcast revenues, making this media class particularly appealing to investors. Our analysis of the podcast market data from last week explains why this is important: 

“The market data continues to highlight audio as a critical medium for brand awareness and consumer connection, which helps explain why we’re seeing increasing podcast M&A and capital flows – revenue follows consumer behavior, and capital follows revenue!” 

• Re-sharing this from our newsletter deal analysis last week → Podcast M&A and capital flows have been strong in 2025. I talked about this in my analysis of TCG’s $40M investment into Audiochuck and Fox’s acquisition of Red Seat Ventures. And this activity builds upon 2024’s landmark acquisition of Veritone ONE and Oxford Road by Insignia Capital for $100M+, and Acast’s acquisition of Wonder Media. Just this week, PodX bought Lemonada for $30M, which we’ll likely write about soon. Further, newsletter Soundbite reports that QCODE just raised more funding, and that Goalhanger is in talks with TCG for a fundraise. That’s a lot of deal activity! Based on our audio client M&A work and many more insider industry conversations, our team expects capital flows into podcasting to remain strong through the rest of the year. 

I’m the founder of RockWater Industries. We do M&A and strategy advisory for creator economy and digital agencies. From buy / sell-side M&A and fundraising, to consumer research and go-to-market planning.

DM me on LinkedIn or email me chris @ wearerockwater dot com

RockWater Roundup

M&A analysis of the creator economy to make you a better operator and investor.

Today we discuss Moburst’s acquisition of Kitcaster, a podcast booking agency. We analyze deal details, strategic rationale, and why ad agencies are expanding their capabilities in audio.

Let’s break it down…

————

–TARGET: Kitcaster–

Overview

• Matches clients with podcast shows that align to niches
• Helps clients access new audiences through podcast appearances, interviews, aka a podcast booking agency
• Founded 2019 by Brandy Whelan, Ryan Estes
• 15 associated members on LinkedIn 
• Based in Denver, CO

Financials

• $1.5M Revenue
• $200K EBITDA
• 13% EBITDA margin

Company Highlights

• 52 clients including Kajabi, Obviously, Swag.com, Omnipanel 
• Offers placement based on industry, such as SaaS, Blockchain, Real Estate, etc 

Capital Markets History

• April 2025 – Acquired by Moburst

–BUYER: Moburst–

Overview

• Full-service digital ad agency
• Founded in 2013 by Gilad Bechar and Lior Eldan 
• 7 offices, NYC, SF, Miami, Orlando, Denver, Tel Aviv, London
• Services incl strategy, organic mktg, creative, social media
• Clients include Google, Uber, Samsung, Pfizer, Nielsen

Company Highlights

• 2024 Digital Agency of the Year by Mobile Marketing Association
• 2022-2024 AdWeek Fastest Growing Agency

Business Lines

• Digital Marketing – digital strategy, analytics, SEO, social media management, influencer marketing, PR, other conversion marketing
• Mobile App Marketing – product strategy, analytics, localization, concept and design, production, social media management

Capital Markets History

• Raised $2M+ via accelerators and angel rounds
• 4th acquisition in 5 yrs, 2nd in 5 months

–DEAL DETAILS–

Overview

• Announced 4.14.25
• $700K total consideration
• 0.5x revenue multiple
• 3.5x EBITDA multiple

Post Deal Ops

• Kitcaster and its 52 clients will be integrated into Uproar by Moburst
• NOTE: Uproar is new PR division created after Moburst acquired Orlando-based Uproar PR in Dec 2024
• Kitcaster cofounders to lead podcast team, will report to Moburst COO Mike Harris

Strategic Rationale

• Capture share of est $4.5B 2025 podcast ad spend
• Expands Moburst’s end-to-end solutions to customers seeking audio marketing
• Provides Kitcaster with resources to expand reach and grow platform 
• Podcast placement services establishes clients’ companies and executives as credible sources

–WHAT ELSE I FIND INTERESTING–

• Podcast M&A and capital flows have been strong in 2025. I talked about this in my analysis of TCG’s $40M investment into Audiochuck and Fox’s acquisition of Red Seat Ventures. And this activity builds upon 2024’s landmark acquisition of Veritone ONE and Oxford Road by Insignia Capital for $100M+, and Acast’s acquisition of Wonder Media. Just this week, PodX bought Lemonada for $30M, which we’ll likely write about soon. Further, newsletter Soundbite reports that QCODE just raised more funding, and that Goalhanger is in talks with TCG for a fundraise. That’s a lot of deal activity! Based on our audio client M&A work and many more insider industry conversations, our team expects capital flows into podcasting to remain strong through the rest of the year.  

• A note on valuation. Deal price imples a valuation of 0.5x revenue and 3.5x EBITDA. We don’t have much info on Kitcaster’s financial performance (our numbers are based on Pitchbook), so it’s hard to break down the key deal value drivers. Overall, these multiples feel on the lower end of the range, likely driven by subscale revenue and EBITDA of $1.5M and $200k, respectively. We start to see deal premiums pick up at $1M+ EBITDA, and then the next threshold is $3-5M+. Also, 13% EBITDA margin is low, where more more scaled agencies are in the 20-30% range. I’m also unsure about Kitcaster’s recent growth trends, but my guess is that the company wasn’t on a high growth trajectory. Which would explain the need for a sale, to partner up with a larger divsersified agency to drive more revenue growth via a broader package of marketing services to offer prospective clients.

• Podcasting is a powerful tool for thought leadership and brand credibility. Following the 2024 election, podcasts have become a mainstream news outlet for many Americans. Podcasts allow hosts and interviewers to have a natural free flowing conversation that makes the audience feel included. This makes podcasts a natural advertising channel for brands looking to reach new customers, and also build credibility through podcast host and show association. This acquisition gives Moburst end-to-end solutions for customers interested in audio marketing. “Podcasting has become one of the most powerful tools for thought leadership today,” said Gilad Bechar, founder and CEO of Moburst.

• Podcast market data explains the growing dealmaking in the space. Based on the deal press release, there are over 584M podcast listeners worldwide, and 55% of the U.S. population ages 12+ listen to a podcast at least once a month. Of note, podcasting brings in large audiences with a high penetration rate in niche topics. Further, podcast ad spending worldwide is projected to hit $4.46 billion by 2025, and Hernan Lopez of Owl & Co estimates the size of the global podcast economy at $7.3B when accounting for “audio and video, direct and programmatic ad revenue, branded and work-for-hire podcasts, and consumer payments”. The market data continues to highlight audio as a critical medium for brand awareness and consumer connection, which helps explain why we’re seeing increasing podcast M&A and capital flows – revenue follows consumer behavior, and capital follows revenue! 

I’m the founder of RockWater Industries. We do M&A and strategy advisory for creator economy and digital agencies. From buy / sell-side M&A and fundraising, to consumer research and go-to-market planning.

DM me on LinkedIn or email me chris @ wearerockwater dot com