Alec Brondolo

Alec Brondolo asked for a refresh on what makes a studio appealing for M&A to Take-Two, beyond the requirement for it to be accretive, focusing on other qualities like talent, technology, and intellectual property.

Answer

CEO Strauss Zelnick explained that while accretiveness is a financial calculation, the decision to pursue M&A is based on talent, technology, and intellectual property. He stressed the importance of being incredibly selective, looking for enterprises that fit Take-Two's strategy of entertaining the world with creative properties and can operate within its unique culture, rather than simply building a larger empire.

Alec Brondolo asked for a refresh on what makes a studio appealing for M&A to Take-Two, beyond being accretive, focusing on qualities like talent, technology, and intellectual property.

Answer

CEO Strauss Zelnick clarified that while accretiveness is a financial calculation, the decision to pursue M&A is based on talent, technology, and intellectual property. He emphasized being incredibly selective, looking for enterprises that fit Take-Two's strategy of entertaining the world with creative properties and can operate within their unique culture.

Alec Brondolo asked about broader macro trends in the gaming industry, noting Take-Two's 20% Q2 RCS growth, strong mobile ad network growth, and Roblox's bookings. He questioned if Take-Two perceives a more positive cycle for industry growth and the underlying consumer behavior driving this trend.

Answer

Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO, acknowledged a perceived industry tailwind, reminiscent of the early pandemic period but with less intensity. He noted a previous decline in mid-2022, followed by a return to modest growth, and emphasized that current growth pockets are defined by quality, requiring Take-Two to be an outlier to achieve its results.

Alec Brondolo asked about macro trends in the gaming industry, noting the 20% increase in total recurrent consumer spending (TQRCS) and strong growth in mobile game ad networks and Roblox. He questioned if the company believes the industry is entering a more positive growth cycle and the consumer behavior driving it.

Answer

Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO, acknowledged a perceived industry tailwind, similar to the beginning of the pandemic but with less enthusiasm. He noted that consumers are moving back in the company's direction after a decline in mid-2022 and a return to modest growth. He emphasized that growth pockets are defined by quality, and Take-Two's goal is to be an outlier by delivering exceptional results.

Alec Brondolo inquired if AppLovin would be interested in acquiring Google AdX and Google Ads Manager assets if they became available due to the Google Ad Tech antitrust trial, to extend supply reach beyond mobile games.

Answer

Adam Foroughi, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairperson, AppLovin, did not comment on specific assets but emphasized AppLovin's focus on providing the best solution for partners. He noted that open web and CTV publishers struggle to monetize and could benefit from AppLovin's tools, indicating a future interest in broadening supply beyond games once the demand side is robust.

Alec Brondolo asked if the transition to direct payments, bypassing the 30% App Store/Play Store tax, is manifesting sooner than expected and contributed to Q3 results. He also inquired about extending supply beyond mobile games to other surfaces like the open web or CTV, and if AppLovin would be interested in Google AdX and Google Ads Manager assets if they became available.

Answer

Adam Foroughi, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairperson, AppLovin, believes direct payments are not contributing much yet and will take quarters to impact, as it's outside their control. He did not comment on specific Google assets but stated AppLovin is demand-constrained, not supply-constrained. If they bring on more advertisers, they can extend product offerings to open web publishers and CTV, which are struggling to monetize.

Alec Brondolo from Wells Fargo sought to understand the size of the demand queue waiting for the self-service platform and asked about the timeline for rolling out advanced AI agent capabilities within the ads manager.

Answer

CEO Adam Foroughi clarified that the existing queue won't just be opened up; access will still require an invitation through the new referral program, which will be curated by existing successful clients. He outlined a phased rollout for AI tools: simpler AI-powered help agents will come early, while more complex campaign analysis agents and generative AI ad creative tools will be added iteratively over time.

Alec Brondolo asked for an estimate of the pent-up demand from advertisers waiting to join the self-service platform and inquired whether advanced AI 'agent' capabilities would be available at the October 1st launch.

Answer

Co-Founder, CEO & Chairperson Adam Foroughi explained that while there is a queue, access will be curated through the referral program rather than a simple opening of the floodgates. He described Q4 as a 'fun quarter' with multiple growth drivers activating simultaneously. He clarified that AI capabilities will be rolled out iteratively: simpler agents for onboarding will be available early, while more complex analytical agents and generative ad tools will be added over time.

Alec Brondolo asked how much spending growth the current mobile gaming supply base can absorb as advertiser categories expand, and whether supply is becoming the new constraint on growth.

Answer

CEO Adam Foroughi asserted that supply is not a constraint, noting the business grew significantly over the last year on a relatively constant supply base. He emphasized that the primary growth driver is better monetizing the existing billion-plus daily active users by onboarding millions of new advertisers over time. He views potential supply growth as an added benefit, or 'gravy on top,' not the core growth engine.

Alec Brondolo of Wells Fargo & Company asked about the strategy for expanding ad supply. He noted that as demand expands beyond gaming into areas like e-commerce, he was curious about the company's plans to potentially expand its ad supply beyond the mobile games ecosystem.

Answer

CEO Adam Foroughi acknowledged that supply expansion is another key growth vector for the company. While stating that supply is not currently a constraint, he pointed to the acquisition of Wurl as a strategic move to tap into the immense supply of CTV. He indicated a long-term vision where, five years from now, the company's supply reach will certainly extend beyond just mobile gaming.

Alec Brondolo of Wells Fargo asked about the extent of cannibalization of IronSource spend by the Unity ad network and sought confidence that the stabilization of non-Vector revenue would not decelerate Vector's growth.

Answer

CEO Matthew Bromberg stated there is no meaningful cannibalization, estimating the impact at less than 10%, as spend flows to the best return in a broad competitive market. CFO Jarrod Yahes supported this, pointing to the Q3 forecast of continued strong growth in the Unity ad network alongside stabilization in other ad products as a key proof point.

Alec Brondolo of Wells Fargo asked for the approximate percentage of Grow segment revenue that the Unity Ad Network represents to better understand Vector's impact. He also asked where improving the mediation product, LevelPlay, falls on the company's list of strategic priorities.

Answer

CFO Jarrod Yahes explained that the Unity Ad Network (powered by Vector) is by far the largest ad product in the Grow segment, and the ML capabilities will eventually benefit all Grow products. CEO Matthew Bromberg clarified that the primary focus is on user acquisition (UA), as mediation is less strategic for Unity than for competitors because Unity has first-party data and is less reliant on mediation for insights.

Alec Brondolo inquired whether DoubleVerify has begun working with leading AI companies to develop measurement and suitability solutions for ad units that may be embedded within large language models like ChatGPT.

Answer

CEO Mark Zagorski confirmed it's a 'great opportunity' and that DV has started 'super early days' discussions with some platforms. He compared the situation to CTV, where platforms that initially vowed to be ad-free eventually embraced advertising. He believes DV's role as an independent arbiter will be critical as these new AI platforms develop their advertising models, positioning DV to be a key part of their growth.

Alec Brondolo asked why DoubleVerify chose to acquire Rockerbox specifically, given the existence of other nascent measurement platforms, and what key capabilities or synergies drove the decision.

Answer

CEO Mark Zagorski explained that DV had worked on joint projects with Rockerbox prior to the acquisition, confirming a strong fit. Key factors were Rockerbox's unmatched breadth of integrations across MTA, MMM, and various media platforms, and the ability to jointly deliver value to customers. He also noted Rockerbox was underinvested in sales, an area where DV excels, presenting a clear scaling opportunity.

Alec Brondolo of Wells Fargo asked if Compass's advocacy for its private exclusive strategy was a tangible driver of the record agent gross additions in the quarter. He also requested an update on macroeconomic housing trends observed in July.

Answer

Founder, Chairman & CEO Robert Reffkin credited the record recruiting to a combination of factors, including a 37% increase in tech adoption, but highlighted that the company's advocacy for agent and seller choice is a significant competitive advantage. He described July as 'healthy,' with market-wide pending sales up 5% year-over-year, possibly due to delayed spring demand.

Alec Brondolo asked about the Miracle partnership's role in penetrating the long-tail marketplace seller market and sought reassurance on retailer base retention following recent churn, requesting an updated retailer count.

Answer

CEO Michael Komasinski described the Miracle partnership as a way to unlock demand from third-party sellers by offering them Criteo's targeting tools. CFO Sarah Glickman provided an update, stating Criteo now partners with over 230 retailers, up from 225, after rolling off some less profitable players. She highlighted that Criteo works with 70% of the top 30 US retailers and 50% of the top 30 in Europe, reinforcing their strong market position.

Alec Brondolo asked for the pro forma percentage of Retail Media contribution ex-TAC from demand generation services to assess business defensibility. He also requested a comparison of Criteo's self-service tools, like Commerce Go, against competitors such as Meta's Advantage+ and Google's Performance Max.

Answer

CFO Sarah Glickman noted that services represented about 20% of the retail media base, but the departing client was the only significant one with that model. CEO Michael Komasinski positioned Commerce Go as a differentiated 'gray box' solution, offering more transparency and control for agencies, which he contrasted with the more automated 'black box' approach of competitors, viewing this as a key advantage.

Alec Brondolo inquired about the demand-side of the Microsoft partnership, seeking an update on the timeline and the functional process for Microsoft's advertisers to begin purchasing Criteo's retail media inventory in 2025.

Answer

CEO Megan Clarken emphasized the critical importance of this demand for Criteo's flywheel, noting the potential to connect Microsoft's vast advertiser base with Criteo's network of retailers. Chief Product Officer Todd Parsons confirmed that implementation design is underway, with a focus on seamless integration and a rollout planned for 2025.

Alec Brondolo asked about the next product simplification priorities following recent successes and questioned how the Cross-Media measurement product is differentiated from other MTA platforms.

Answer

CEO Scott Howe outlined key product priorities across usability, scalability, and functionality, including expanding cloud interoperability and evolving the marketplace towards AI models. On differentiation, Howe explained LiveRamp acts as a 'measurement enabler' for complex, collaborative use cases that require a Clean Room. CFO Lauren Dillard emphasized that the primary differentiator is the unparalleled scale of LiveRamp's network, which is essential for true cross-partner measurement.

Alec Brondolo asked for insight into the next product iterations focused on making the platform easier to use, following recent successful optimizations.

Answer

CEO Scott Howe outlined three key areas of focus for product enhancement. First is improving usability to make the platform intuitive for non-data scientists, including incorporating AI. Second is enhancing measurement capabilities, particularly for cross-media insights across CTV and social channels. Third is expanding integrations to support more use cases, with a significant push into enabling AI applications for partners, aiming to integrate with all major contenders in the emerging AI space.

Alec Brondolo asked about the strategy for differentiating between the free Airo offering and the monetized Airo Plus bundle, and questioned the drivers behind the significant share repurchase activity in the quarter.

Answer

CEO Aman Bhutani explained that the free Airo provides a base level of functionality with any product purchase, allowing customers to experience its value. Airo Plus is then offered as a higher-end SKU to customers who demonstrate high engagement, providing an expanded feature set. CFO Mark McCaffrey noted that the share repurchase utilized the remainder of the 2022 authorization and reflects the company's ongoing opportunistic approach to buying back shares in the market.

Alec Brondolo asked about the potential to add third-party AI products to the Airo Plus bundle and whether GoDaddy has identified a 'tentpole feature' for the subscription yet.

Answer

CEO Aman Bhutani confirmed they are open to and test third-party products for inclusion. He identified the existing site optimizer and digital marketing suite as key products that attract customers, suggesting they are the current focus for the bundle rather than needing a new tentpole feature.

Alec Brondolo asked for a functional explanation of the 'filtering and traffic shaping' that led to a 30% cost reduction per ad request, and inquired how gross spend trended relative to contribution ex-TAC.

Answer

CEO Michael Barrett explained the efficiency gain comes from intelligently filtering ad requests before auction, using real-time data to prioritize valuable inventory and route it to the most likely buyers. CFO David Day added that for DV+, ad spend and contribution ex-TAC growth rates are similar. For CTV, ad spend still grows faster, but the gap has narrowed, indicating stabilization.

Alec Brondolo asked for more detail on the 30% reduction in cost per ad request and how gross ad spend trended relative to contribution ex-TAC.

Answer

CEO Michael Barrett attributed the cost reduction to sophisticated, real-time filtering and traffic shaping that prioritizes high-value ad requests for auction. CFO David Day clarified that in DV+, ad spend and contribution ex-TAC grow at similar rates, while in CTV, ad spend growth continues to outpace contribution ex-TAC growth, though the gap between the two rates has narrowed.