Dwyane Wade, left, and Jesse Riedel converse onstage through the YouTube Brandcast occasion at Lincoln Middle in New York, Might 13, 2026.
Mike Coppola | Getty Photos
Among the many reside sports activities and leisure exhibits that carried media corporations’ shows to advertisers this week, one other pitch saved popping up: creator content material.
The class of movies, which may amass hundreds of thousands of views on Google’s YouTube and different social media platforms, is more and more sharing the stage with conventional Hollywood choices through the annual presentations known as “upfronts.”
Creator content material is already taking an enormous share of advertiser {dollars}. In 2025, advertiser spending on the style reached $37 billion, based on a recent report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau. This yr, it is anticipated to achieve $44 billion, the report discovered.
“They’re this era’s storytellers, tastemakers and stars, producing probably the most related and fascinating programming on the planet,” stated Brian Albert, managing director of YouTube Options. “And advertisers have acknowledged that they do not simply have giant audiences, they’ve communities that belief them. It is why they need to accomplice with them now, extra so than ever.”
The shift to streaming over conventional TV has led sports activities, especially the NFL, in addition to reside occasions to beckon the very best advert charges — particularly when media corporations are paying hefty premiums for the reside rights.
With streaming, nevertheless, advertisers get extra bang for their buck, trade executives have instructed CNBC. That is true whether or not it is a simulcast sporting occasion on streaming platforms or the unique rights to video podcasts or kids’s packages like “Ms. Rachel.”
These economics — mixed with the necessity to seize elusive, youthful audiences — are spurring demand for ad-supported stock, and opening the door to extra creator-led content material on conventional platforms.
YouTube claims the largest share of streaming viewership, per Nielsen‘s month-to-month reviews referred to as “The Gauge.” As of February, the platform accounted for 12.7% of streaming viewership, with Netflix coming in second at 8.4%.
The corporate hosted its pitch to advertisers — what it calls its Brandcast — on Wednesday, that includes personalities like YouTuber Jesse “Jesser” Riedel, comic Trevor Noah and podcast host Alex Cooper.
Whereas digital stars are commonplace in YouTube’s realm, this yr they performed a bigger position even at conventional media and streaming corporations. Warner Bros. Discovery, Fox Corp. and Amazon’s Prime Video have been among the many corporations that famous the combination of creator content material on their platforms.
“The place there was a definite distinction between studio-led content material and creator content material, it is merging right into a singular view,” stated Julie Clark, longtime advert trade government and senior vp of media and leisure at TransUnion.
“Should you take a look at the rise of issues like long-form video podcasts, to quick-hitting tutorials, there’s an understanding that the content material panorama has shifted dramatically,” she added. “That is completely altering how upfronts are contemplated and activated.”
Legacy media creators
Final yr, it was video podcasts making their way to extra upfront levels — an early indicator that viral on-line content material was becoming a member of the normal fray.
“The panorama has modified a lot over the previous yr. Podcasting is now fairly 360, which means you get a few of your content material watching long-form on video platforms, after which lots of people are beginning to devour extra quick and mid-form on social platforms,” stated Angie Extra, head of creator promoting partnerships at Amazon.
“We’re seeing creators need to benefit from reaching their audiences in every single place,” Extra stated.
Amazon’s Prime Video as soon as once more highlighted a significant video podcast deal at its presentation this week. Oprah Winfrey took the stage to advertise her latest multiyear take care of the corporate to distribute “The Oprah Podcast” on each audio and video. The deal additionally consists of the rights to a library of her previous content material.
Oprah Winfrey on “The Oprah Podcast.”
Courtesy: Harpo Leisure
For corporations like Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, which have lengthy histories of studio-made content material, they’ve begun to lean into creator content material via personalities which are already mainstays on their platforms — significantly these in unscripted meals and residential enchancment exhibits.
WBD has been working with creators and influencers for years, stated Karen Bronzo, chief world advertising and marketing officer for U.S. networks and information at WBD, in an interview.
Bronzo famous that this type of programming has grow to be an even bigger a part of the dialog for media corporations and advertisers. She stated working with on-line personalities permits conventional networks to increase their attain — and permits entrepreneurs to faucet into expansive fanbases, which are sometimes paying shut consideration to their favourite personalities and types.
“While you’re experiencing the content material from a creator, you do really feel it’s private. It’s a far more, type of, one-to-one relationship and a distinct sort of connection,” stated Bronzo.
Throughout WBD’s upfront presentation on Wednesday, Bronzo stated the corporate’s lineup for The Meals Community is additional increasing into YouTube originals, with a brand new sequence that includes chef Esther Choi coming to the community’s social media channel. Apart from The Meals Community, HGTV residence enchancment sequence and the “Pet Bowl” — the annual Tremendous Bowl-adjacent canine present — have been ripe for producing such content material.
Animal Planet’s “Pet Bowl.”
Courtesy: WBD
Fox has equally discovered an entry level into the creator ecosystem through meals. Earlier this yr, the corporate launched Fox Creator Studios, with a concentrate on meals content material. The trouble is led by cooks already on the Fox roster, together with Gordon Ramsay.
Ramsay took the stage of Fox’s upfront pitch on Monday, alongside NFL legend Tom Brady and stars of community leisure exhibits, to tout his sequence on Fox and the Creator Studios.
Fox has centered a lot of it streaming effort on its free, ad-supported service, Tubi, which has been inking agreements with YouTube personalities to create content material particularly for the streamer. In flip, these creators are bringing their followings over from the social media platform.
Particularly, Tubi has attracted the Gen Z viewers, a key demographic for advertisers seeking to attain youthful shoppers who do not tune into conventional media shops as typically. The Fox-owned streamer additionally launched Tubi for Creators, and has been seeking to present creators a pathway to Hollywood, CNBC previously reported.
Tubi hosted its own presentation for advertisers in late March, ushering creators onto the stage, together with YouTube’s Jesser.
The platform has since introduced numerous creator-led partnerships, together with an unique soccer-focused sequence led by Jesser that premiered on Friday.
