IAC (IAC) TD Cowen's 54th Annual Technology, Media & Telecom Conference summary

Corporate actions and restructuring

• Announced a corporate consolidation to simplify operations, unlock portfolio value, and address share price discount.

• Closed the sale of Care.com in Q1, raising $300 million in cash and continuing asset liquidation plans.

• Prioritizing capital allocation to stock buybacks, MGM shares, and strategic M&A at People Inc.

• Consolidation aims to eliminate duplicative functions, targeting $40M+ OpEx savings and $20M-$25M in stock-based comp savings by February 2027.

• Rebranding to People Incorporated, with management transition to be completed by Q2 2027.

Revenue and business segment performance

• People Digital revenue grew 8% in Q1, with advertising up 1% and performance marketing up mid-teens.

• Advertising growth driven by strong premium sales and off-platform advertising, offset by declining owned-and-operated site traffic.

• Performance marketing diversified beyond search-based referrals, with 25% of revenue from off-session views.

• Licensing segment saw strong growth, led by content licensing, AI/data licensing (notably Meta and OpenAI deals), and Walmart BHG product licensing.

Traffic, platform strategy, and AI impact

• Significant decline in owned-and-operated dot-com traffic (down 16-17% in Q1), but off-platform audiences grew nearly 40% CAGR over two years.

• 60% of revenue still comes from dot-com visits (flat in Q1), while 40% from off-platform sources grew 24%.

• Brands are at different stages of exposure to AI-driven search changes; some have minimal search exposure, while others face ongoing headwinds.

• Strategic pivot to video and platform-specific content has enabled successful monetization across Apple News, Meta, TikTok, YouTube, and others.