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Organization, Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2026
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Organization, Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
1. Organization, Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Organization and Description of Business
On June 6, 2025, Outbrain Inc. (“Outbrain”), operating under the new Teads brand following Outbrain’s acquisition of TEADS, a private limited liability company (société à responsabilité limitée) incorporated and existing under the laws of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (“Legacy Teads”), completed its corporate name change from Outbrain Inc. to Teads Holding Co. (together with its subsidiaries, “Teads,” the “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”). The Company is headquartered in New York, New York, with additional operations in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The Company’s Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Common Stock”), began trading on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the “TEAD” ticker symbol effective June 10, 2025.
The Company operates a two-sided marketplace that creates a scaled, end-to-end advertising solution by maintaining direct relationships with global advertisers, including Fortune 500 brands and agency holding companies, as well as media owners spanning premium publishers to connected TV (“CTV”), application developers and other existing and emerging content platforms. The Company generates revenue primarily from advertisers purchasing media owner inventory through its platform. The Company’s platform is designed to enable advertisers to reach their audiences across the digital advertising ecosystem and drive desired outcomes from those audiences at each step of the marketing funnel. The Company continues to focus on providing efficient, high-impact supply chains for advertisers and sustainable advertising revenue for media owners as the digital advertising ecosystem evolves.
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and are unaudited. Certain information and disclosures normally included in consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP have been condensed or omitted. Accordingly, these condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements and related notes included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 16, 2026 (“2025 Form 10-K”).
On February 3, 2025, Outbrain acquired Legacy Teads for a purchase price of $0.9 billion, comprised of a cash payment of $625 million and 43.75 million shares of Outbrain’s Common Stock (the “Acquisition”). The Acquisition combined the offerings of Outbrain and Legacy Teads into one of the largest Open Internet platforms, allowing the Company to better serve enterprise brands and agencies, as well as mid-market and direct response advertisers across different media environments. In connection with the Acquisition, the Company incurred $11 million of transaction costs (direct acquisition costs) during the three months ended March 31, 2025, which were recognized within general and administrative expenses. See Note 2, Acquisition, to the 2025 Form 10-K for additional information.
As a result of the Acquisition, the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include the results of Legacy Teads’ operations from the Acquisition date of February 3, 2025. Consequently, the financial information presented as of and for the three months ended March 31, 2026 is not directly comparable to financial information presented for the corresponding prior year period.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and related disclosures as of the date of the condensed consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Estimates and judgments are based on historical information and on various other assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable under the circumstances. Estimates and assumptions made in the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include, but are not limited to, the allowance for credit losses, sales allowance, software development costs eligible for capitalization, valuation of deferred tax assets, the useful lives of property and equipment, the useful lives and fair value of intangible assets, valuation of goodwill, the fair value of stock-based awards, benefit obligations, fair value of plan assets, and
the recognition and measurement of income tax uncertainties and other contingencies. Actual results could differ materially from these estimates.
Revenue Recognition
The Company sells the placement of advertisements to media agencies and advertisers, which it collectively refers to as its customers. The Company’s customers include brands, performance marketers and other advertisers, which are collectively referred to as its advertisers, each of which contract for use of its services primarily through insertion orders or through self-service tools, allowing advertisers to establish budgets for their advertising campaigns. The Company generates revenue either directly from its customers or indirectly via demand-side platforms (DSPs). Revenue generated directly from its customers can be either on a self-serve basis, where the customer logs into the buying interface and sets up and manages a campaign, or on a managed basis where Company’s teams will log into the buying interface, set up and manage the campaign on behalf of the customers. The Company recognizes revenue pursuant to the five-step framework contained in ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”) as further described in Note 1, Organization, Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies—Revenue, to the 2025 Form 10-K.
The Company recognizes revenue at a point in time when the advertising is delivered or the outcome occurs, given the real‑time nature of delivery and measurement. The Company recognizes revenue over time when the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefits of a specific campaign. Revenue is earned across multiple monetization models using cost-per-click (“CPC”), cost-per-thousand impressions (“CPM”), cost-per-view (“CPV”), and cost-per-incremental action (“CPA”). Prices are typically denominated in unit rates (e.g., CPC, CPM, CPV, CPA) applied to measured delivery or outcomes. The Company estimates variable consideration based on actual delivery volume or measured outcomes, as well as allowances, discounts, rebates (including agency rebates), credits, incentives, or other price concessions. Variable consideration is estimated and included in the transaction price only to the extent it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenue will not occur.
Consideration payable to a customer. The Company’s media partners are generally suppliers of inventory, not customers, in arrangements where the Company’s customer is the advertiser. Accordingly, payments to media partners—including revenue shares, guaranteed minimum payments, and programmatic supply costs—are recorded in cost of revenue. The Company evaluates any arrangement in which a counterparty plays multiple roles to determine whether any portion of the payment represents consideration payable to a customer under ASC 606. When amounts qualify as consideration payable to a customer, such amounts are recorded as a reduction of revenue, unless the Company receives a distinct good or service at fair value, in which case the amounts are recorded in operating expenses instead of reducing revenue.
Practical expedients. The Company’s chief operating decision-maker is not reviewing these different streams separately and therefore the Company has not disaggregated the revenue presentation by revenue stream but has shown the disaggregation by geography. See Note 14 for disaggregation of the Company’s revenue based on geography of where the Company’s marketers are physically located.
When performance obligations are satisfied over time and for which there is no variable consideration, the Company recognizes revenue in the amount to which it has a right to invoice the customer. This reflects the fact that the Company’s right to payment corresponds directly with the value of the Company’s performance completed to date, consistent with the practical expedient in ASC 606.
Principal vs. agent (gross vs. net) presentation. The Company generally acts as the principal because it controls the specified advertising inventory or the right to the advertising service before it is transferred to the advertiser. Accordingly, the Company presents revenue on a gross basis, with amounts payable to media partners recorded as traffic acquisition costs within cost of revenue.
Contract Balances. Contract liabilities primarily comprise advance payments from customers for future services and are recorded as deferred revenue in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. The Company does not have contract assets because revenue is typically recognized as services are performed and billing generally aligns with delivery.
Cost of Revenue
Traffic Acquisition Costs. Traffic acquisition costs consist of amounts the Company owes to media partners for the purchase of or use of inventory. The Company incurs costs with its media partners, which may be publishers, third-party intermediaries or other parties such as original equipment manufacturers in the period in which certain actions, such as click-throughs,
impressions or views, occur. Such costs due to media partners are based on the media partners’ contractual revenue share, programmatic bidding or guaranteed minimums based on certain media partner conditions. In some circumstances, the Company incurs costs based on a guaranteed minimum payment, which may be based on either impressions, page views or a fixed amount if the partner reaches certain performance targets, in exchange for guaranteed placement on specified portions of the media partners’ online properties. Traffic acquisition costs also include amounts payable to media partners whose supply is purchased programmatically.
In some instances, the Company may make upfront payments to media partners in connection with long-term contracts. The Company capitalizes these advance payments under these agreements if specific capitalization criteria have been met. The capitalization criteria includes the existence of future economic benefits to the Company, the existence of legally enforceable recoverability language (e.g., early termination clauses), management’s ability and intent to enforce the recoverability language and the ability to generate future earnings from the agreement in excess of amounts deferred. Capitalized amounts are amortized as traffic acquisition costs over the shorter of the period of contractual recoverability or the corresponding period of economic benefit. Amounts not yet paid are accrued systematically based on the Company’s estimate of user engagement.
Other Cost of Revenue. Other cost of revenue includes costs related to the management of data centers, hosting fees, data connectivity costs, and depreciation and amortization. It also includes the amortization of capitalized software developed or acquired for internal use in support of the Company’s revenue-generating technologies, as well as costs associated with studies and research that directly support these technologies. Additionally, other cost of revenue includes amortization of intangible assets related to developed technology acquired by the Company and used in its revenue-generating efforts.
Certain Risks and Concentrations
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist of cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, investments in marketable securities, and accounts receivable. The Company’s cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and investments in marketable securities are generally invested in high-credit quality financial instruments with both banks and financial institutions to reduce the amount of exposure to any single financial institution.
The Company generally does not require collateral to secure accounts receivable, with the exception of certain customers with higher potential credit risk who are required to prepay for their campaigns. No single marketer accounted for 10% or more of the Company’s total revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2026 or 2025, or 10% or more of its gross accounts receivable balance as of March 31, 2026 and December 31, 2025. During the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025, none of the Company’s media partners accounted for 10% of its total traffic acquisition costs.
Segment Information
The Company has one operating and reporting segment. The Company’s chief operating decision maker is its Chief Executive Officer who makes resource allocation decisions and assesses performance based on financial information presented on a consolidated basis.
Defined Benefit Plans
The Company maintains defined benefit pension plans in certain international locations which were acquired as part of the Acquisition. Pension benefits are based on employee age, years of service, and compensation. As of March 31, 2026 and December 31, 2025, the net pension liability was $7.1 million and $7.0 million, respectively. Total net periodic benefit cost was $0.2 million during each of the three months ended March 31, 2026 and the three months ended March 31, 2025. Service cost is recorded within operating expenses, while all other cost components are recorded in other income, net. No cash contributions were required during the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025. See Note 14, Defined Benefit Plans, to the 2025 Form 10-K for additional information.
New Accounting Pronouncements
The Company has evaluated all Accounting Standards Updates (“ASUs”) issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”). Standards not summarized below were assessed and determined to be either inapplicable or are not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements
In September 2025, the FASB issued ASU 2025-06, “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other – Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Internal-Use Software” (“ASU 2025-06”). ASU 2025-06 removes all references to software project development stages, and requires capitalization to begin when management has authorized and committed to funding the project, and it is probable that the project will be completed and the software will be used to perform the function intended. ASU 2025-06 is effective for our annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027, and for interim periods within those annual reporting periods, with early adoption permitted. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of ASU 2025-06 on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.
In November 2024, the FASB issued ASU 2024-03, “Income Statement - Reporting Comprehensive Income - Expense Disaggregation Disclosures” (“ASU 2024-03”). ASU 2024-03 requires disclosures about certain costs and expenses, including but not limited to, purchases of inventory; employee compensation; depreciation; intangible asset amortization; and selling expenses. The ASU is required to be applied prospectively and is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2026, and for interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2027. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of ASU 2024-03 on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.
See Note 1 to the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2025 in the 2025 Form 10-K for a complete disclosure of the Company’s significant accounting policies.