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OpenAI pays Dotdash Meredith at least $16 million a year for content, IAC filings show

Public IAC financial documents showed OpenAI paying Dotdash Meredith a fixed fee of at least about $16 million a year to license its content, with a variable component to come. The licensed content powers ChatGPT and Dotdash's ad targeting tools.

NEW YORK, November 18, 2024 - OpenAI is paying digital media company Dotdash Meredith at least about $16 million a year to license its content, according to public financial documents from parent company IAC reviewed by Adweek. The figure reflects only the fixed portion of the payment, and a variable component is still to be calculated.12

Terms of the deal

Engadget, summarizing Adweek's reporting, said the actual payout could rise above $16 million per year, because the number covers only the fixed component. IAC's chief operating and financial officer, Chris Halpin, said on an earnings call that licensing revenue was up about $4.1 million year over year in the third quarter of 2024, and that most of the increase was driven by the OpenAI license. Variable components will be calculated and recognized later.1

Dotdash Meredith licenses its content so that OpenAI can train ChatGPT, and ChatGPT displays content and links attributed to its publications. Those include Food & Wine, InStyle, Better Homes & Gardens, Lifewire and Investopedia. Dotdash will also use OpenAI's models to improve its in-house ad-targeting tool.1 Adweek reported that most of OpenAI's publisher deals are built around fixed and variable components, according to a leaked pitch deck.2

Background

Dotdash Meredith had announced the OpenAI partnership earlier in 2024 without disclosing money.1 The later reporting came from IAC's own public documents, not from a leak, which makes the $16 million floor more reliable than most figures in this market, which come from anonymous sources.

What it means for data sellers

The Dotdash figure gives sellers a rare data point, but it is a floor for a large, multi-brand publisher with a well-known archive. It should be read as one reference, not a rate.

The fixed plus variable structure matters most. A fixed fee provides predictable income, while a variable portion can tie some of the payment to how often content is used. Sellers should ask which portion they are being offered, and how usage will be measured.

This entry is a news summary. SellYourAIData was not involved in the deal.

How the deal came together

  1. A partnership was announced earlier in 2024. OpenAI and Dotdash Meredith had already disclosed a content partnership, but without a price.
  2. IAC filings showed the fixed fee. Adweek reviewed IAC's public financial documents and reported a payment of at least around $16 million per year.
  3. The CFO explained the structure. IAC's chief operating and financial officer said Q3 2024 licensing revenue rose about $4.1 million, mostly from OpenAI, with variable amounts still to be recognized.
  4. Content and tools run both ways. ChatGPT shows attributed Dotdash content with links, and Dotdash uses OpenAI models for ad targeting.

Takeaways for companies with data

  • Public company filings can reveal the price of a deal the parties never announced.
  • Fixed plus variable payments are a common structure, so a headline figure may understate the total.
  • Licensing revenue can be material enough to call out on an earnings call.

Sources

Every numbered reference above points to an entry here. Figures come from these pages as of the date shown at the top of the article. Where a source reports a number it got from unnamed people, the text says so.

  1. OpenAI will pay DotDash Meredith at least $16 million per year to license its content (Engadget, November 2024)
  2. OpenAI Is Paying Dotdash Meredith At Least $16 Million to License Its Content (Adweek, November 2024)

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About the AI Data Deal Tracker

SellYourAIData tracks publicly reported sales and licenses of data to AI companies, with the price, terms and sources for each. Entries are checked against public reporting and updated as deals change. SellYourAIData was not involved in this deal. To ask what your company's data could sell for, get a free valuation. To report a deal, contact us.