The new-age hustle is really quite something. From TikTok personalities who earn millions a year for recycled dance choreography to the likes of Joe Rogan securing fat paydays leveraging his podcast– it’s inspiring knowing you can make money from just about anything. The latest success story is that of IMGN Media, a company best known for producing memes and viral videos alike which are subsequently hosted on Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok. And as it so happens, IMGN Media has just been acquired by Warner Music Group for a casual US$85 million.
The motivating factor wasn’t so much for the memes itself – especially given the “basic” nature and quality of said memes – but for the wealth of data IMGN Media possess. According to the company’s official website, the firm’s channels has an aggregate subscriber/follower count of over 40 million, racking up more than 3 billion views every month across an entire portfolio of familiar-sounding accounts, e.g. Daquan. Additionally, of those 40 million subscribers/followers, approximately 85% of the audience are young millennials and Gen Z. Safe to assume, the core demographic alone is money in the bank to any marketer worth their salt.
Warner Music Group’s game plan from here on out is pretty clear. With direct access to the youth on platforms renowned for native content and serving as de-facto taste markers, they could conceivably establish a direct funnel for their upcoming artists, as well as the brand new releases from their more established talent. Despite how obvious this all is, Warner Music Group has apparently been “careful” with avoiding any such suggestions.
I guess it really does pay to be a memelord have an audience.
