SPOTIFY-TENCENT STAKE SWAP?:  Late last week rumors began to circulate about a possible pre-IPO agreement between Spotify and Asian tech giant Tencent to swap a stake in one another, as reported in the attached RAIN link.  The move is a non-cash way to diversify each publishers’ assets, and could create a path for future strategic partnerships in the Asian streaming market.  The best way to do this kind of transaction is pre-IPO.  Spotify has been stalling on an IPO for most of 2017 – so do they go public after the swap?  And there’s been speculation that Tencent will spin off its music division into a separate entity, which it will take public in the next few months.  So the timing of a stake swap could work out well for both companies.  More to come on this one, I’m sure.

iHEART’S DEBT RESTRUCUTURING GETS CONENTIOUS:  Last week Cumulus chose Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as the path to address its debt and (hopefully) survive as a company.  Now it’s iHeart’s turn to come to terms with its own 21 billion pound debt gorilla.  The attached Radio Ink link describes the negotiation happening between iHeart and its creditors.  The basic arrangement is for iHeart to give up more stake in itself in return for new debt they can use to pay off old debt. (Sounds healthy, right?)  The only question is how much equity will they give up for what size line of credit?  iHeart is offering a total of 87.5% of the company in return for $7B in new debt.  But the creditors want 95.3% of iHeart in return of $5.75M in new debt.  Keep in mind neither option actually pays down the debt – it’s just a way of iHeart buying time by mortgaging off ownership of itself.  To me this feels like a pretty sad way to kick the financial can down the road.

A LITTLE “FUTURE OF DIGITAL” LEVITY:  I know today’s DG is little bit of a financial grind.  To lighten things up I’d like to leave you with a spot on cartoon which appeared in today’s AdExchanger.  It pretty much sums up where digital media is headed.  Numbered are the days of just selling bulk impressions of whatever ad unit at a set CPM.  Now it’s all about data, which will be purchased by clients via self-serve API portals, unless you’re a mega-spender who’ll receive the equivalent of white-gloved VIP entry into the data garden.  This view on the future of digital media is absolutely going to happen.  The only question is which brands, publishers, agencies and marketing professionals will be ready for it.

Have a great Monday guys!