0001104659-22-040234 | 10-K | XBRL Viewer

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Accounts receivable allowance	$ 1,094	$ 1,387
Common stock, par value	$ 11.50
Treasury stock, shares	0	0
Series A, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	10,710,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	10,710,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	10,710,000
Series A1, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	11,630,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	11,630,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	11,630,000
Series B, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	13,468,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	13,468,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	13,468,000
Series C, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	15,375,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	15,375,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	15,375,000
Series D, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	7,383,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	7,383,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	7,383,000
Series E, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	4,914,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	4,914,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	4,914,000
Series F, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	15,440,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	15,440,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	15,440,000
Series G, convertible preferred stock
Convertible preferred stock, par value	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Convertible preferred stock, shares authorized	0	15,440,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares issued	0	15,440,000
Convertible preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	15,440,000
Class A common stock
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Common stock ,shares authorized	700,000,000	700,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	110,789,875	1,540,000
Common stock shares outstanding	110,789,875	1,540,000
Class B Common Stock
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Common stock ,shares authorized	20,000,000	20,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	15,872,459	10,439,000
Common stock shares outstanding	15,872,459	10,439,000
Class C common stock
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Common stock ,shares authorized	10,000,000	10,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	6,478,031	0
Common stock shares outstanding	6,478,031	0

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
Revenue	$ 397,564	$ 321,324	$ 317,923
Costs and Expenses.
Cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization	207,397	140,290	150,350
Sales and marketing	54,981	50,680	79,845
General and administrative	112,552	83,061	87,417
Research and development	24,928	17,669	21,129
Depreciation and amortization	22,860	17,486	19,450
Total costs and expenses	422,718	309,186	358,191
(Loss) income from operations	(25,154)	12,138	(40,268)
Other (expense) income, net	(2,740)	1,593	1,598
Interest (expense) income, net	(2,885)	(923)	1,393
Change in fair value of warrants	4,740
Change in fair value of derivative liability	26,745
Loss on disposition of subsidiaries	(1,234)	(711)
(Loss) income before income taxes	(528)	12,097	(37,277)
Income tax (benefit) provision	(26,404)	941	(358)
Net income (loss)	25,876	11,156	(36,919)
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interest	936	820	273
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	228
Net income (loss) attributable to BuzzFeed, Inc.	24,712	$ 10,336	(37,192)
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B and Class C common stock , Basic			(37,192)
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B and Class C common stock , Diluted	$ (716)		$ (37,192)
Net income (loss) per Class A, Class B and Class C common share - Basic	$ 0.00	$ 0.00	$ (3.15)
Net income (loss) per Class A, Class B and Class C common share - Diluted	$ (0.03)	$ 0.00	$ (3.15)
Basic weighted average common shares outstanding	27,048	11,942	11,804
Diluted weighted average common shares outstanding	28,001	11,942	11,804

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)
Net income (loss)	$ 25,876	$ 11,156	$ (36,919)
Other comprehensive income (loss)
Unrealized loss on marketable securities			(1)
Foreign currency translation adjustment	126	(2,116)	864
Other comprehensive income (loss)	126	(2,116)	863
Comprehensive income (loss)	26,002	9,040	(36,056)
Comprehensive income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interest	936	820	273
Comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests	228
Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to BuzzFeed, Inc.	$ 24,838	$ 8,220	$ (36,329)

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Common Stock Class A common stock Previously reported balance	Common Stock Class A common stock Retroactive application of the exchange ratio	Common Stock Class A common stock	Common Stock Class B Common Stock Previously reported balance	Common Stock Class B Common Stock Retroactive application of the exchange ratio	Common Stock Class B Common Stock	Common Stock Class C common stock Previously reported balance	Common Stock Class C common stock HuffPost	Common Stock Class C common stock	Additional paid-in capital Previously reported balance	Additional paid-in capital Retroactive application of the exchange ratio	Additional paid-in capital HuffPost	Additional paid-in capital	Accumulated deficit Previously reported balance	Accumulated deficit	Treasury stock Previously reported balance	Treasury stock Retroactive application of the exchange ratio	Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income Previously reported balance	Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income	Parent [Member] Previously reported balance	Parent [Member] HuffPost	Parent [Member]	Noncontrolling Interest [Member] Previously reported balance	Noncontrolling Interest [Member] HuffPost	Noncontrolling Interest [Member]	Class A common stock	Class B Common Stock	Class C common stock	Previously reported balance	HuffPost	Total
Balance at beginning at Dec. 31, 2018	$ 1	$ (1)		$ 3	$ (2)	$ 1	$ 0			$ 32,834	$ (817)		$ 32,017	$ (319,962)	$ (319,962)	$ (820)	$ 820	$ (2,106)	$ (2,106)	$ (290,050)		$ (290,050)	$ 0						$ (290,050)		$ (290,050)
Balance at beginning (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2018	4,994,000	(3,466,000)	1,528,000	33,212,000	(23,049,000)	10,163,000	0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Stock-based compensation													2,813									2,813									2,813
Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options													195									195									195
Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options			6,000			212,000
Other comprehensive income																			863			863									863
Net income (loss)															(37,192)							(37,192)									(37,192)
Balance at end at Dec. 31, 2019						$ 1							35,025		(357,154)				(1,243)			(323,371)									(323,371)
Balance at end (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2019			1,534,000			10,375,000
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Stock-based compensation													1,189									1,189									1,189
Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options			6,000			64,000
Other comprehensive income																			(2,116)			(2,116)									(2,116)
Net income (loss)															10,336							10,336									10,336
Issuance of common stock in connection with share-based plans													159									159									159
Balance at end at Dec. 31, 2020						$ 1							36,373		(346,818)				(3,359)			(313,803)									(313,803)
Balance at end (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2020			1,540,000			10,439,000																				1,540,000	10,439,000	0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Stock-based compensation													23,565									23,565									23,565
Other comprehensive income																			126			126									126
Net income (loss)															24,712							24,712			$ 228						24,940
Issuance of common stock									$ 1				34,999									35,000									35,000
Issuance of common stock (in shares)									3,839,000
HuffPost Acquisition, Noncontrolling interest																								$ 2,122
Shares issued for C Acquisition			$ 1									$ 24,064	96,199								$ 24,064	96,200								$ 26,186	96,200
Shares issued for C Acquisition (in shares)			10,000,000					2,639,000																		10,000,000
Issuance of common stock in connection with share-based plans													6,975									6,975									6,975
Issuance of common stock in connection with share-based plans (in shares)			1,921,000			476,000
Merger of BuzzFeed Japan and HuffPost Japan																									(510)						(510)
Disposition of subsidiaries																									204						204
Conversion of shares, class A common stock issued (in shares)			9,693,000			(9,693,000)
Conversion of shares, class B common stock converted			$ 1			$ (1)
Reverse recapitalization, net of transaction costs			$ 9			$ 1							473,694									473,704									473,704
Reverse recapitalization, net of transaction costs (in shares)			93,021,000			11,175,000
Balance at end at Dec. 31, 2021			$ 11			$ 1			$ 1				$ 695,869		$ (322,106)				$ (3,233)			$ 370,543			$ 2,044						$ 372,587
Balance at end (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2021			116,175,000			12,397,000			6,478,000																	110,789,875	15,872,459	6,478,031

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Operating activities:
Net income (loss) (including amounts attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interest)	$ 25,876	$ 11,156	$ (36,919)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	22,860	17,486	19,450
Unrealized gain (loss) on foreign currency	1,824	(2,623)	209
Stock based compensation	23,565	1,189	2,813
Change in fair value of warrants	(4,740)
Change in fair value of derivative liability	(26,745)
Issuance costs allocated to derivative liability	1,424
Amortization of debt discount and deferred issuance costs	326
Deferred income tax	(28,087)	112	(1)
Loss on disposition of subsidiary	1,234	711
Loss (gain) on disposition of assets	220	254	(1,007)
Loss on extinguishment of debt		600
Unrealized gain on investment		(500)
Provision for doubtful accounts	(161)	322	67
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable	(12,951)	(7,086)	4,397
Prepaid expenses and other current assets and prepaid expenses and other assets	2,361	2,537	(6,395)
Accounts payable	3,546	(1,521)	(4,603)
Deferred rent	(4,456)	397	(2,507)
Accrued compensation	2,307	1,429	488
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	(1,847)	2,086	6,309
Deferred revenue	(5,759)	1,004	(2,544)
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities	797	27,553	(20,243)
Investing activities:
Business acquisitions, net of cash acquired	(189,885)
Capital expenditures	(4,983)	(4,708)	(423)
Capitalization of internal-use software	(11,039)	(9,830)	(8,166)
Purchases of marketable securities			(48)
Proceeds from sales and maturities of marketable securities			25,000
Cash of disposed subsidiary, less proceeds on disposition	(2,121)	(265)
Cash (used in) provided by investing activities	(208,028)	(14,803)	16,363
Financing activities:
Net proceeds from reverse recapitalization	(11,652)
Proceeds from issuance of common stock	35,000
Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes, net of issuance costs	143,806
Proceeds from exercise of stock options	6,975	159	195
Borrowings from revolving credit facility	9,000	19,896
Payments on revolving credit facility	(1,306)	(217,982)
Borrowings from secured borrowing facility		217,382
Cash provided by financing activities	181,823	19,455	195
Effect of currency translation on cash and cash equivalents	(985)	(103)	264
Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(26,393)	32,102	(3,421)
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period	106,126	74,024	77,445
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period	79,733	106,126	74,024
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Cash paid for income taxes, net	1,228	83	415
Cash paid for interest	$ 901	$ 1,096	$ 270

Description of the Business

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Description of the Business

Description of the Business

1. Description of the Business

BuzzFeed, Inc. (referred to herein, collectively with its subsidiaries, as “BuzzFeed or the “Company”) is a global media company with social, content-driven publishing technology. BuzzFeed provides breaking news, original reporting, entertainment, and video across its owned and operated and the social web to its global audience. BuzzFeed derives its revenue primarily from content, advertising and commerce sold to leading brands. The Company has one reportable segment.

On December 3, 2021 (the “Closing Date”), the Company consummated the previously announced business combinations in connection with (i) that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated June 24, 2021 (as amended, the “Merger Agreement”), by and among 890 5th Avenue Partners, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“890”), Bolt Merger Sub I, Inc., a Delaware corporation and a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of 890 (“Merger Sub I”), Bolt Merger Sub II, Inc., a Delaware corporation and a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of 890 (“Merger Sub II”), and BuzzFeed, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“ Legacy BuzzFeed”), pursuant to which (a) Merger Sub I merged with and into Legacy BuzzFeed (the “First Merger”), with Legacy BuzzFeed surviving the First Merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of 890 and (b) immediately following the First Merger, Legacy BuzzFeed merged with and into Merger Sub II (the “Second Merger” and, together with the First Merger, the “Two-Step Merger”), with Merger Sub II surviving the Second Merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of 890; and (ii) the Membership Interest Purchase Agreement, dated as of March 27, 2021 (as amended, the “C Acquisition Purchase Agreement”), by and among Legacy BuzzFeed, CM Partners, LLC, Complex Media, Inc., Verizon CMP Holdings LLC and HDS II, Inc., pursuant to which the surviving entity acquired 100% of the membership interests of CM Partners, LLC. CM Partners, LLC, together with Complex Media, Inc., is referred to herein as “Complex Networks.” The Two-Step Merger and the other transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, including the acquisition by the surviving entity of Complex Networks, are hereinafter referred to as the “Business Combination.” In connection with the consummation of the Business Combination, 890 was renamed “BuzzFeed, Inc.”

Liquidity

As of and for the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company has cash and cash equivalents of $79.7 million, generated positive income of $25.9 million, and positive operating cash inflows. However, the Company has a history of losses, and has an accumulated deficit of $322.1 million as of December 31, 2021. The Company has cash available on hand and management believes its existing capital resources will be sufficient to support the Company’s operations and meet its obligations as they come due within one year from the date these consolidated financial statements are issued.

The Business Combination

On the Closing Date: (i) each issued and outstanding share of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “890 Class A common stock”), and Class F common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “890 Class F common stock”), of 890 became one share of BuzzFeed Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “BuzzFeed Class A common stock”); (ii) each issued and outstanding whole warrant to purchase shares of 890 Class A common stock became a warrant to acquire one share of BuzzFeed Class A common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share (each a “BuzzFeed warrant”); and (iii) each issued and outstanding unit of 890 that had not been previously separated into the underlying share of 890 Class A common stock and the underlying warrants of 890 upon the request of the holder thereof was cancelled and entitled the holder thereof to one share of BuzzFeed Class A common stock and one-third of one BuzzFeed warrant.

In addition, on the Closing Date (i) each share of Legacy BuzzFeed Class A common stock and Legacy BuzzFeed preferred stock (other than Series F Preferred Stock and Series G Preferred Stock, any cancelled shares or dissenting shares) issued and outstanding were cancelled and automatically converted into the right to receive 0.306 shares of BuzzFeed Class A Common Stock; (ii) all of the shares of Series F Preferred Stock and Series G Preferred Stock issued and outstanding were cancelled and automatically converted into the right to receive 30,880,000 shares of BuzzFeed Class A Common Stock; (iii) each share of Class B Common Stock of Legacy BuzzFeed issued and outstanding (other than any cancelled shares or dissenting shares) were cancelled and automatically converted into the right to receive 0.306 shares of BuzzFeed Class B Common Stock; and (iv) each share of Class C Common Stock of Legacy BuzzFeed issued and outstanding were cancelled and automatically converted into the right to receive 0.306 shares of BuzzFeed Class C Common Stock, in each case in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Merger Agreement. As a result, shares of BuzzFeed capital stock no longer represent an ownership interest in Legacy BuzzFeed, but instead represent an ownership interest in BuzzFeed.

In addition, pursuant to subscription agreements entered into in connection with the Merger Agreement, the Company issued, and certain investors purchased, $150.0 million aggregate principal amount of unsecured convertible notes due 2026 concurrently with the closing of the Business Combination (the “Notes”).

Holders of 27,133,519 shares of 890 Class A common stock sold in 890’s initial public offering (the “Public Shares”) properly exercised their right to have their public shares redeemed for a full pro rata portion of the trust account holding the proceeds from 890’s initial public offering, calculated as of two business days prior to the Closing, which was approximately $10.00 per share, or $271.3 million in the aggregate. Approximately $16.2 million remained in 890’s trust account and was used to partially fund the Business Combination.

The following table summarizes the proceeds raise and issuance costs incurred related to the Business Combination:


Cash from reverse recapitalization	$	16,167
890 reverse recapitalization costs		(13,795)
BuzzFeed reverse recapitalization costs		(14,609)
Accrued reverse recapitalization costs		585
Net proceeds from reverse recapitalization	$	(11,652)

Proceeds from Notes	$	150,000
Issuance costs		(6,757)
Issuance costs settled in stock		563
Proceeds from issuance of Notes, net of issuance costs	$	143,806

After giving effect to the Business Combination (including the issuance of 10,000,000 shares of BuzzFeed Class A common stock pursuant to the C Acquisition Purchase Agreement), the redemption of Public Shares as described above and the separation of the former 890 units, as of the Closing Date, there were 110,789,875 shares of BuzzFeed Class A common stock issued and outstanding, 15,872,459 shares of BuzzFeed Class B common stock issued and outstanding and 6,478,031 shares of BuzzFeed Class C common stock issued and outstanding.

The Two-Step Merger was accounted for as a reverse recapitalization, with no goodwill or other intangible assets recorded, in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). Under this method of accounting, 890 was treated as the “acquired” company for financial reporting purposes. Accordingly, for accounting purposes, the reverse recapitalization was treated as the equivalent of Legacy BuzzFeed issuing stock for the net assets of 890, accompanied by a recapitalization. The net assets of 890 were stated at historical cost, with no goodwill or other intangible assets recorded. Operations prior to the reverse recapitalization are those of Legacy BuzzFeed.

The determination of Legacy BuzzFeed being the accounting acquirer for the Two-Step Merger was primarily based on evaluation of the following facts and circumstances: (i) Legacy BuzzFeed’s existing stockholders own the majority of the shares and have the majority of the voting interests in BuzzFeed with more than 97% of the voting interests; (ii) Legacy BuzzFeed appointed the majority of the directors on BuzzFeed’s Board; (iii) Legacy BuzzFeed’s existing management comprises the majority of the management of BuzzFeed; (iv) Legacy BuzzFeed is the larger entity based on historical revenues and business operations and comprises the majority of the ongoing operations of BuzzFeed; and (v) Legacy BuzzFeed assumed BuzzFeed’s name.

In accordance with guidance applicable to these circumstances, the equity structure has been recast in all comparative periods up to the Closing Date to reflect the number of shares of the Company’s common stock, $0.0001 par value per share, issued to Legacy BuzzFeed’s stockholders in connection with the Business Combination. As such, the shares and corresponding capital amounts and earnings per share related to Legacy BuzzFeed redeemable convertible preferred stock (other than Series F Preferred Stock and Series G Preferred Stock ) and Legacy BuzzFeed common stock prior to the Business Combination have been retroactively recast as shares reflecting the Exchange Ratio of 0.306 established in the Business Combination. Legacy BuzzFeed Series F Preferred Stock and Series G Preferred stock have been retroactively restated based on the exchange into 30,880,000 shares of BuzzFeed Class A common stock established in the Business Combination.

BuzzFeed common stock and warrants commenced trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbols “BZFD” and “BZFDW,” respectively, on December 6, 2021.

COVID-19

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the viral strain of COVID-19 a global pandemic and recommended containment and mitigation measures worldwide. The spread of COVID-19 and the resulting economic contraction has resulted in increased business uncertainty and significantly impacted our business and results of operations.

We believe that the COVID-19 pandemic drove a shift in commerce from offline to online, including an increase in online shopping, which we believe contributed to the rapid growth we experienced in our commerce revenue for fiscal 2020. However, the growth of our commerce revenue has decelerated during 2021 as shelter-in-place orders were lifted, consumers returned to shopping in stores, and retailers struggled with supply chain disruptions and labor shortages.

The continued duration and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic is uncertain, rapidly changing, and difficult to predict. The degree to which COVID-19-related disruptions impact the Company’s future results will depend on future developments, which are outside of the Company’s control, including, but not limited to, the duration of the pandemic, its severity, the success of actions taken to contain or prevent the virus or treat its impact, and how quickly and to what extent normal economic and operating conditions can resume. Our growth rate may continue to be impacted by additional macroeconomic factors beyond our control, such as inflation, retail businesses reopening, increased consumer spending on travel and other discretionary items, and the absence of new U.S. and other government economic stimulus programs, among other things.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Financial Statements and Principles of Consolidation

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of BuzzFeed, Inc., and its wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries. The Company’s consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Certain prior year figures have been reclassified to conform to current period presentation.

The Company evaluates its relationships with other entities to identify whether they are variable interest entities (“VIE”) in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 810, Consolidation.

In August 2015, the Company signed a Joint Venture Agreement (“JVA”) with Yahoo Japan to establish and develop operations in Japan. BuzzFeed Japan will carry out the core BuzzFeed business in the Japanese language for the Japanese market. BuzzFeed Japan is a joint venture owned 51% by the Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, BuzzFeed UK Limited, and The Huffington Post Holdings LLC and 24.5% by Z Holdings Corporation and 24.5% by Asahi Shimbun Company. BuzzFeed Japan is included as a consolidated subsidiary in the consolidated financial statements.

During 2021 and 2020 the Company established several production companies created solely for the purpose of producing a single film each, which are considered VIEs. The Company is the primary beneficiary of each production company as it has the ability to direct the activities that most significantly impact the economic performance of the entities, the obligation to absorb losses, and the right to receive benefits from the entities. As a result, the production companies are included as consolidated subsidiaries in the consolidated financial statements.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported results of operations during the reporting period. Due to the use of estimates inherent in the financial reporting process actual results could differ from those estimates.

Key estimates and assumptions relate primarily to revenue recognition, fair values of intangible assets acquired in business combinations, valuation allowances for deferred income tax assets, allowance for doubtful accounts, fair value of the derivative liability, fair values used for stock-based compensation in periods prior to the Business Combination, useful lives of fixed assets, and capitalized software costs.

Fair Value Measurements

The fair value framework under the applicable authoritative guidance requires the categorization of assets and liabilities into three levels:

●

Level 1 — inputs are quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities

●

Level 2 — inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly, unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for similar assets or liabilities, unadjusted quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the related assets or liabilities.

●

Level 3 — inputs are generally unobservable inputs and typically reflect management’s best estimate of assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability.

The fair value of a financial instrument is the amount for which the instrument could be exchanged in a current transaction between willing parties. The level in the fair value hierarchy within which a fair value measurement in its entirety falls is based on the lowest-level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.

The carrying amounts of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, prepaid and other current assets, accounts payable, accrued expenses, deferred rent, deferred revenue, other current liabilities, and borrowings on our Revolving Credit Facility (as defined below) approximate fair value. Money market funds are categorized as Level 1.

The Company’s non-financial assets, which include property and equipment, capitalized software costs, prepaid and other assets, and intangible assets, are not required to be measured at fair value on a recurring basis. However, if certain triggering events occur, or if an annual impairment test is required and the Company is required to evaluate the non-financial asset for impairment, a resulting asset impairment would require that the non-financial asset be recorded at its fair value.

Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentration of credit risk consist of cash and cash equivalents. The Company considers instruments with an original maturity of three months or less at the date of purchase to be cash equivalents. The Company’s cash and cash equivalents consist of demand deposits with financial institutions and investments in money market funds. Deposits held with these financial institutions may exceed the amount of insurance provided on such deposits. The associated risk of concentration is mitigated by banking with creditworthy institutions.

The Company classifies all cash whose use is limited by contractual provisions as restricted cash. In the first quarter of 2021, letters of credit totaling $15.5 million were issued under the $50.0 million revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) which reduced the remaining borrowing capacity by the same amount. These letters of credit were used in favor of our landlords, relieving us of the requirement to maintain $15.5 million of cash as collateral. As a result, the $15.5 million of restricted cash as of December 31, 2020 is no longer restricted.

The following table summarizes cash and cash equivalent and restricted cash in the consolidated balance sheets (in thousands):


	2021		2020
Cash and cash equivalents	$	79,733	$	90,626
Restricted cash		—		15,500
Total	$	79,733	$	106,126

Accounts Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

The Company’s accounts receivable are customer obligations due under normal trade terms, carried at their face value less an allowance for doubtful accounts if required. The Company determines its allowance for doubtful accounts based on the evaluation of the aging of its accounts receivable and on a customer-by-customer analysis of its high-risk customers. The Company’s reserve contemplates its historical loss rate on receivables, specific customer situations and the economic environments in which the Company operates.

The change in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts was as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Balance as of January 1,	$	1,387	$	1,122	$	1,055
Additions		703		1,208		449
Write-offs, net of recoveries		(996)		(943)		(382)
Balance as of December 31,	$	1,094	$	1,387	$	1,122

As of December 31, 2021, the Company had one customer that represents 11% of net accounts receivable. As of December 31, 2020, the Company had four customers that represent 13%, 13%, 12% and 10% of net accounts receivable. The Company had two customers representing 13% and 12% of total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021, two customers representing 13% and 10% of total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2020, and two customers representing 12% and 10% of total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Film Costs

Costs incurred to produce films (which include direct production costs, production overhead, acquisition costs and development costs) are capitalized when incurred. Capitalized film costs are amortized based upon the ratio of current period revenues to estimated total gross revenues to be earned from the film. Film costs, which were included in prepaid and other assets on the consolidated balance sheets, were as follows:


	2021		2020
Individual Monetization:
Feature films in production	$	3,690	$	2,086
Total	$	3,690	$	2,086

During the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company amortized film costs of $7.1 million associated with individually monetized feature films. No amortization of film costs was recorded during the years ended December 31, 2020 or 2019. Film cost amortization is included in cost of revenue in the consolidated statements of operations.

Film costs are stated at the lower of amortized cost or estimated fair value and are reviewed on a title-by-title basis when an event or change in circumstances indicates that the fair value of a film is less than its unamortized cost. During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 or 2019, the Company recorded no impairment charges related to film costs.

Property and Equipment

Property and equipment is stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation on property and equipment is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the lease term or the estimated useful life. The estimated useful lives of property and equipment of each asset category are as follows:


		Useful Life (Years)
Furniture and fixtures		5
Leasehold improvements		7 – 11
Computer equipment		3
Video equipment		3

Capitalized Software Costs

The Company capitalizes certain costs incurred for development of websites or software for internal use. The Company capitalizes development costs when preliminary development efforts are successfully completed, management has authorized and committed project funding and it is probable that the project will be completed and the software will be used as intended. Costs include payroll and payroll-related costs of employees directly associated with the development activities. Costs incurred for enhancements that are expected to result in additional features or functionality are capitalized and amortized over the estimated useful life of the

enhancements, generally 1 to 3 years. Costs incurred in the preliminary and post-implementation stages of the Company’s products are expensed as incurred.

Investments

For equity investments in entities that the Company does not exercise significant influence over, if the fair value of the investment is not readily determinable, the investment is accounted for at cost, and adjusted for subsequent observable price changes. If the fair value of the investment is readily determinable, the investment is accounted for at fair value. The Company reviews equity investments without readily determinable fair values at each period end to determine whether they have been impaired.

As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, the Company had an investment in equity securities of a privately-held company without a readily determinable fair value. The total carrying value of the investment, included in prepaid and other assets on the consolidated balance sheets, was $2.3 million as of December 31, 2021 and 2020. The Company concluded that the fair value of the investment increased $0.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2020 as the result of observable price changes in orderly transactions for a similar investment in the same issuer.

Evaluation of Long-Lived Assets and Impairment

The Company reviews its property and equipment and capitalized software costs for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable. If circumstances require a long-lived asset to be tested for possible impairment, the Company first compares undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by the asset to its carrying value. If the carrying value of the long-lived asset is not recoverable on an undiscounted cash flow basis, an impairment is recognized to the extent that the carrying value exceeds its fair value. Fair value is determined through various valuation techniques which may include discounted cash flow models, quoted market values and third-party independent appraisals, as considered necessary. There was no impairment of long-lived assets for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, or 2019.

Revenue Recognition

The Company recognizes revenue in a manner that depicts the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services.

The Company primarily generates its revenue from advertising services and content, which includes strategic partnerships and promotional content, with the remaining balance from other arrangements, including commerce.

Advertising

The Company generates its advertising revenue from managing a customer’s internet advertising campaigns to target markets both via BuzzFeed’s proprietary sites as well as premium publishers (e.g., Facebook and Google). Our performance obligations typically consist of a promised number of ads delivered or a promised number of actions related to the ads (such as impressions or views). Advertising revenue is recognized in the period that the related views, impressions, or actions by users on advertisements are delivered. When ads are placed on the Company’s owned and operated or third parties’ properties, the Company generally recognizes revenue on a gross basis because the Company is primarily responsible for the delivery of the promised services, has pricing discretion, and controls the advertising inventory prior to transfer to the customer. In some cases, the Company utilizes third party intermediaries to facilitate the sale of advertising to the end customer. In these situations, while the Company is primarily responsible for the delivery of the promised services and controls the advertising inventory prior to transfer to the end customer, the Company typically does not have insight, and does not expect to have insight, into the gross amount paid by the end customer and therefore records as revenue the net amount received from the intermediary.

Content

The Company generates revenue from creating content, including promotional content, customer advertising, and feature films. The Company’s performance obligations consist of Company-created content for use by its customers or the delivery of a promised number of actions related to the content (impressions or views). The revenue is recognized when the content, or the related action, is delivered.

Commerce

The Company participates in multiple marketplace arrangements with third parties such as Amazon whereby the Company provides affiliate links which redirect the audience to purchase products and/or services from the third parties. When the participant purchases a product and/or service, the Company receives a commission fee for that sale from the third parties. The revenue is recognized when a successful sale is made and the commission is earned.

Cost of Revenue

Cost of revenue consists primarily of compensation-related expenses and costs incurred for the publishing of editorial, promotional, and news content across all platforms, as well as amounts due to third party websites and platforms to fulfil customers’ advertising campaigns. Web hosting and advertising serving platform costs are also included in cost of revenue.

Sales and Marketing

Sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of compensation-related expenses for sales employees. In addition, marketing and sales-related expenses include advertising costs, market research, and branding.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expense consists primarily of compensation-related expenses for corporate employees. Also, it consists of expense for facilities, professional services fees, insurance costs, and other general overhead costs.

Research and Development

Research and development (“R&D”) expenses consist primarily of compensation-related expenses incurred for the development of, enhancements to, and maintenance of the Company’s website, technology platforms and infrastructure. R&D expenses that do not meet the criteria for capitalization are expensed as incurred. Certain development expenses are capitalized under the provisions of the applicable authoritative guidance, whereby the Company capitalizes costs associated with website and internal-use software systems that have reached the application development stage.

Income Taxes

Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. A valuation allowance is recorded for deferred tax assets if it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized.

The Company recognizes tax benefits from uncertain tax positions if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position.

The Company made a policy election to treat the income tax with respect to GILTI as a period expense when incurred.

Stock-Based Compensation

Stock-based compensation is recognized as an expense in the consolidated financial statements and is measured at the fair value of the award. The Company recognizes compensation expense for stock awards based on grant date fair value using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The Company accounts for forfeitures as they occur.

The Company adopted Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2018-07, Improvements to Non-employee Share-Based Payment Accounting (“ASU 2018-07”), on January 1, 2020. Prior to January 1, 2020, the Company calculated the fair value of awards to non-employees on the date of grant in the same manner as employee stock-based awards, however, the unvested portion of the awards were revalued at the end of each reporting period and the pro-rata compensation expense was adjusted accordingly until such time the non-

employee award was fully vested. The adoption of this ASU did not have material impact on the consolidated financial statements and there was no adjustment to beginning accumulated deficit on January 1, 2020.

The following table summarizes stock-based compensation cost included in the consolidated statements of operations:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization	$	2,788	$	109	$	353
Sales and marketing		4,829		60		658
General and administrative		15,052		977		1,446
Research and development		896		43		356
	$	23,565	$	1,189	$	2,813

The Company recognized no income tax benefit in the consolidated statements of operations for stock-based compensation arrangements in 2021, 2020 or 2019.

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

Comprehensive income (loss) includes certain changes in stockholders’ equity that are excluded from net income (loss) such as cumulative foreign currency translation adjustments, unrealized gains or losses on marketable securities, and comprehensive income (loss) attributed to the redeemable noncontrolling interest.

Foreign Currency

The functional currency of our foreign subsidiaries are generally the local currency. The financial statements of these subsidiaries are translated into U.S. dollars using month-end rates of exchange for assets and liabilities, and average rates of exchange for revenue, costs and expenses. Translation gains and losses are recorded in accumulated other comprehensive loss in stockholders’ equity. Transaction gains and losses including intercompany transactions denominated in a currency other than the functional currency of the entity involved are included in foreign exchange gain (loss) within other income, net in the consolidated statements of operations. The Company does not enter into foreign currency forward exchange contracts or other derivative financial instruments to hedge the effects of adverse fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

The Company, an emerging growth company, or EGC, has elected to take advantage of the benefits of the extended transition period provided for in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act, for complying with new or revised accounting standards which allows the Company to defer adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies.

In October 2021, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2021-08, Business Combinations (Topic 805): Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities from Contracts with Customers (“ASU 2021-08”). ASU 2021-08 requires an acquirer to account for revenue contracts acquired in a business combination in accordance with ASC 606, as if it had originated the contracts. Prior to ASU 2021-08, an acquirer generally recognized assets acquired and liabilities assumed in a business combination, including contract assets and contract liabilities arising from revenue contracts with customers and other similar contracts, at fair value on the acquisition date. As permitted by the ASU, the Company elected to early adopt the amendments in the fourth quarter of 2021 and retrospectively applied ASU 2021-08 to its acquisitions that occurred in 2021. The adoption of ASU 2021-08 did not have a significant impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-06, Debt – Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging — Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40), Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity (“ASU 2020-06”). The ASU eliminates two of the three models in Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 470-20 that require separating embedded conversion features from convertible instruments. As a result, only conversion features accounted for under the substantial premium model in ASC 470-20 and those that require bifurcation in accordance with ASC 815-15 will be accounted for separately. For contracts in an entity’s own equity, the new guidance eliminates some of the requirements in ASC 815-40 for equity classification. The guidance also addresses how convertible instruments are accounted for in the diluted earnings per share (EPS) calculation and requires enhanced disclosures about the terms of convertible instruments and contracts in an entity’s own equity. Early adoption is permitted for all entities for fiscal periods beginning after December 15, 2020, including interim periods within

the same fiscal year. The ASU allows entities to use a modified or full retrospective transition method. The Company elected to early adopt ASU 2020-06 effective January 1, 2021. The adoption of ASU 2020-06 did not have a significant impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-15, Intangibles-Goodwill and Other (Topic 350): Internal-Use Software (“ASU 2018-15”). ASU 2018-15 aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement that is a service contract with the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software. The guidance is effective for the Company for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2020, and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2021. The Company adopted ASU 2018-15 prospectively for the Company’s annual reporting period effective January 1, 2021 and will adopt it for interim reporting periods beginning on January 1, 2022. The adoption did not have a significant impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

On January 1, 2020, the Company adopted ASU 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820) — Disclosure Framework — Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurement, an accounting standard that improved the effectiveness of fair value measurement disclosures and modified the disclosure requirements on fair value measurements in Topic 820, Fair Value Measurement, based on the concepts in Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Concepts Statement, Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting — Chapter 8: Notes to Financial Statements, including the consideration of costs and benefits. The adoption of this ASU did not have material impact on the consolidated financial statements.

On January 1, 2021, the Company adopted the amended guidance in ASU 2019-02, Improvements to Accounting for Costs of Films and License Agreements for Program Materials, which aligns the accounting for capitalizing production costs of episodic television series with the guidance for films. As a result, the capitalization of costs incurred to produce episodic television series is no longer limited to the amount of revenue contracted in the initial market until persuasive evidence of a secondary market exists. In addition, under this guidance we test our film costs for impairment on a title-by-title basis or together with other films and series as part of a group, based on the predominant monetization strategy of the film or series. Further, for film costs monetized in a film group, the guidance requires any change to the estimated life of the film or television series to be accounted for prospectively. The guidance eliminates existing balance sheet classification guidance and adds new disclosure requirements relating to costs for acquired and produced films and television series. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements.

On January 1, 2019, the Company adopted Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606), which supersedes the revenue recognition requirements in Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) Topic 605, Revenue Recognition (Topic 605), using the modified retrospective transition method applied to those contracts that were not completed as of January 1, 2019. The impact of adopting the new revenue standard was not material to our consolidated financial statements and there was no adjustment to beginning accumulated deficit on January 1, 2019.

Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), which supersedes existing guidance on accounting for leases in Leases (Topic 840) and generally requires leased assets and lease liabilities to be recognized on the balance sheet. The ASU is effective for the Company for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2021, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is still assessing the potential impact that ASU 2016-02 will have on our consolidated financial statements and disclosures, but we expect that we will recognize material right-of-use lease assets and related lease liabilities for operating leases, with no impact to our Income Statements or Statements of Cash Flows.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments — Credit Losses (Topic 326), which changes the impairment model for most financial assets, including accounts receivable, and replaces the existing incurred loss impairment model with an expected loss methodology, which will result in more timely recognition of credit losses. The guidance is effective for the Company for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2022, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently assessing the timing and impact of adopting ASU 2016-13 on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU No. 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. The amendments in this ASU simplify the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740, Income Taxes. The amendments also improve consistent application and simplify GAAP for other areas of Topic 740 by clarifying and amending existing guidance. The guidance is effective for the Company for annual periods beginning after December 15,

2021, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is currently assessing the timing and impact of adopting the new guidance on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Acquisitions and Dispositions

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Acquisitions and Dispositions

Acquisitions and Dispositions

3. Acquisitions and Dispositions

C Acquisition

On December 3, 2021, the Company completed the acquisition of 100% of the members’ interests of Complex Networks, a publisher of online media content targeting Millennial and Gen Z consumers (the “C Acquisition”).

The following table summarizes the fair value of consideration exchanged as a result of the C Acquisition:


Cash consideration⁽¹⁾	$	197,966
Share consideration⁽²⁾		96,200
Total consideration	$	294,166

(1) — Includes the cash purchase price of $200.0 million adjusted for certain closing specified liabilities as specified in the C Acquisition Purchase Agreement.

(2) — Represents 10,000,000 shares of BuzzFeed Class A common stock at a price of $9.62 per share, which is based on the Company’s closing stock price for Class A common stock on the Closing Date.

The following table summarizes the preliminary determination of the fair value of identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed from the C Acquisition. The purchase price allocation for the assets acquired and liabilities assumed may be subject to change as additional information is obtained during the acquisition measurement period.


Cash		2,881
Accounts receivable		22,581
Prepaid and other current assets		17,827
Property and equipment		332
Intangible assets		119,100
Goodwill		189,391
Accounts payable		(2,661)
Accrued expenses		(12,319)
Accrued compensation		(12,867)
Deferred revenue		(5,855)
Deferred tax liabilities		(22,776)
Other liabilities		(1,468)
Total consideration for Complex Networks		294,166

The table below indicates the estimated fair value of each of the identifiable intangible assets:


		Weighted Average
	Asset Fair Value	Useful Life (Years)
Trademarks & tradenames	97,000	15
Customer relationships	17,000	4
Developed technology	5,100	3

The fair values of the intangible assets were estimated using Level 3 inputs. The fair value of trademarks and trade names was determined using the relief from royalty method, the fair value of customer relationships was determined using the multi-period excess earnings approach, and the fair value of acquired technology was determined using the replacement cost approach. The excess of purchase consideration over the fair value of net tangible and identifiable intangible assets acquired resulted in $189.4 million of goodwill, which is primarily attributed to workforce and synergies, and is not deductible for tax purposes.

The C Acquisition contributed $18.5 million of revenue and $1.2 million of net income for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Pro Forma Financial Information

The following unaudited pro forma information has been presented as if the C Acquisition occurred on January 1, 2020. The information is based on the historical results of operations of Complex Networks, adjusted for:

The allocation of purchase price and related adjustments, including adjustments to amortization expense related to the fair value of intangible assets acquired;

Impacts of issuance of the Notes to partially fund the acquisition, including interest;

The movement and allocation of all acquisition-related costs incurred during the twelve months ended December 31, 2021 to the twelve months ended December 31, 2020;

Associated tax-related impacts of adjustments; and

Changes to align accounting policies.

The pro forma results do not necessarily represent what would have occurred if the C Acquisition had taken place on January 1, 2020, nor do they represent the results that may occur in the future. The pro forma adjustments were based on available information and upon assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable to reflect the impact of these acquisitions on the Company's historical financial information on a supplemental pro forma basis. The following table presents the Company's pro forma combined revenues and net income.


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020
Revenue	$	521,224	$	446,368
Net loss		(19,747)		(12,972)

Acquisition of HuffPost and Verizon Investment

On February 16, 2021, the Company completed the acquisition of 100% of TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. (“HuffPost”) (“HuffPost Acquisition”), a publisher of online news and media content, from entities controlled by Verizon Communications Inc. (“Verizon”). The Company issued 6,478,032 shares of non-voting BuzzFeed Class C common stock to an entity controlled by Verizon, of which 2,639,322 were in exchange for the acquisition of HuffPost and 3,838,710 were in exchange for a concurrent $35.0 million cash investment in the Company by Verizon, which was accounted for as a separate transaction.

The following table summarizes the fair value of consideration exchanged as a result of the HuffPost Acquisition:


Fair value of common stock issued⁽¹⁾	$	24,064
Working capital adjustments		(490)
Total consideration	$	23,574

(1) – represents 8,625,234 shares of Legacy BuzzFeed common stock issued at a value of $2.79 per share. The fair value per share was determined using Level 3 inputs using a combination of a market approach based on guideline public companies and an income approach based on estimated discounted cash flows.

The following table summarizes the determination of the fair value of identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed from our acquisition of HuffPost. During the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company finalized the fair value of assets acquired and

liabilities assumed. Measurement period adjustments were reflected in the fourth quarter of 2021, which is the period in which the adjustments occurred. The adjustments resulted from deferred income tax adjustments.


			Measurement
			Period
	Preliminary		Adjustments		Final
Cash and cash equivalents		5,513		—		5,513
Accounts receivable		3,383		—		3,383
Prepaid and other current assets		611		—		611
Deferred tax assets		116		15		131
Property and equipment		620		—		620
Intangible assets		19,500		—		19,500
Goodwill		5,927		(437)		5,490
Accounts payable		(1,410)		—		(1,410)
Accrued expenses		(4,249)		—		(4,249)
Deferred tax liabilities		(4,251)		422		(3,829)
Other liabilities		(63)		—		(63)
Noncontrolling interests		(2,123)		—		(2,123)
Total consideration for HuffPost	$	23,574	$	—	$	23,574

The fair values of the intangible assets were estimated using Level 3 inputs. The fair value of trademarks and trade names was determined using the relief from royalty method and the fair value of acquired technology was determined using the replacement cost approach. The useful lives of the acquired trademarks and trade names and acquired technology are 15 years and 3 years, respectively. The excess of purchase consideration over the fair value of net tangible and identifiable intangible assets acquired resulted in $5.5 million of goodwill, which is primarily attributed to workforce and synergies, and is not deductible for tax purposes.

The HuffPost Acquisition contributed $30.3 million of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021. The HuffPost Acquisition did not have a material impact on the Company’s net loss for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Dispositions of HuffPost Italy, HuffPost Korea and HuffPost France

During 2021 the Company disposed of its 51% ownership interests in HuffingtonPost Italia S.R.L (“HuffPost Italy”), HuffingtonPost Korea, Ltd. (“HuffPost Korea”), and Le HuffingtonPost SAS (“HuffPost France”) for nominal consideration and recognized losses on disposition of $1.2 million. HuffPost Italy, HuffPost Korea, and HuffPost France did not have a material impact on the Company’s net loss for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Disposition of BuzzFeed Brazil

In October 2020 the Company completed the sale of 100% ownership of BuzzFeed do Brasil Internet Ltda. (“BuzzFeed Brazil”) for nominal consideration and recognized a loss on disposition of $0.7 million. BuzzFeed Brazil had no impact on the Company’s net income (loss) for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Revenue Recognition

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Revenue Recognition

Revenue Recognition

4. Revenue Recognition

Disaggregated Revenue

The table below presents the Company’s revenue disaggregated based on the nature of its arrangements. Management uses these categories of revenue to evaluate the performance of its businesses and to assess its financial results and forecasts.


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Advertising	$	205,794	$	149,704	$	128,438
Content		130,200		119,846		150,876
Commerce and other		61,570		51,774		38,609
	$	397,564	$	321,324	$	317,923

The following table presents the Company’s revenue disaggregated by geography:


	2021		2020		2019
Revenue:
United States	$	352,280	$	292,107	$	287,723
International		45,284		29,217		30,200
Total	$	397,564	$	321,324	$	317,923

Contract Balances

The timing of revenue recognition, billings and cash collections can result in billed accounts receivable, unbilled receivables (contract assets), and deferred revenues (contract liabilities). The payment terms and conditions within the Company’s contracts vary by the type, the substantial majority of which require that customers pay for their services on a monthly or quarterly basis, as the services are being provided. When the timing of revenue recognition differs from the timing of payments made by customers, the Company recognizes either unbilled revenue (its performance precedes the billing date) or deferred revenue (customer payment is received in advance of performance). In addition, we have determined our contracts generally do not include a significant financing component.

The Company’s contract assets are presented in Prepaid and other current assets on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets and totaled $13.3 million, $2.8 million, and $6.2 million, and $nil at December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, and January 1, 2019, respectively. These amounts relate to revenue recognized during the respective year that is expected to be invoiced and collected in the following year. During the year ended December 31, 2021 the Company acquired $16.5 million of contract assets as part of the C Acquisition.

The Company’s contract liabilities, which are recorded in Deferred revenue on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets, are expected to be recognized as revenues during the succeeding twelve-month period. Deferred revenue totaled $1.7 million, $2.4 million, $1.5 million, and $4.0 million at December 31,2021, 2020, and 2019, and January 1, 2019, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2021 the Company acquired $5.9 million of deferred revenue as part of the C Acquisition.

Transaction Price Allocated to Remaining Performance Obligations

We have certain licensing contracts with minimum guarantees and terms extending beyond one year. Revenue to be recognized related to the remaining performance obligations was $4.2 million at December 31, 2021 and is expected to be recognized over the next 3 years. This amount does not include: (i) contracts with an original expected duration of one year or less, such as advertising contracts, (ii) variable consideration in the form of sales-based royalties, and (iii) variable consideration allocated entirely to wholly unperformed performance obligations.

- Definition

The entire disclosure of revenue from contract with customer to transfer good or service and to transfer nonfinancial asset. Includes, but is not limited to, disaggregation of revenue, credit loss recognized from contract with customer, judgment and change in judgment related to contract with customer, and asset recognized from cost incurred to obtain or fulfill contract with customer. Excludes insurance and lease contracts.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=49130388

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130551-203045

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 13
-Subparagraph (b)(2)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130556-203045

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 12
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130554-203045

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 9
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130550-203045

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 12
-Subparagraph (e)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130554-203045

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 12
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130554-203045

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 12
-Subparagraph (d)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130554-203045

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 15
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130558-203045

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 12
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130554-203045

+ Details

Fair Value Measurements

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Fair Value Measurements

Fair Value Measurements

5. Fair Value Measurements

The Company’s financial assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis are summarized below:


	December 31, 2021
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Assets:
Cash equivalents:
Money market funds	$	1	$	—	$	—	$	1
Total	$	1	$	—	$	—	$	1
Liabilities:
Derivative liability	$	—	$	—	$	4,875	$	4,875
Other non-current liabilities:
Public Warrants		4,792		—		—		4,792
Private Warrants		—		146		—		146
Total	$	4,792	$	146	$	4,875	$	9,813


	December 31, 2020
	Level 1		Level 2	Level 3	Total
Assets:
Cash equivalents:
Money market funds	$	24,460	—	—	$	24,460
Total	$	24,460	—	—	$	24,460
Liabilities:
Derivative liability		—	—	—		—
Other non-current liabilities:
Public Warrants		—	—	—		—
Private Warrants		—	—	—		—
Total		—	—	—		—

The Company’s investments in money market funds are measured at amortized cost, which approximates fair value.

The Company’s warrant liability as of December 31, 2021 includes public and private warrants that were originally issued by 890, but which were assumed by the Company as part of the Closing of the Business Combination (the “Public Warrants” and “Private Warrants”, respectively, or together, the “Public and Private Warrants”). The Public and Private Warrants are recorded on the balance sheet at fair value. The carrying amount is subject to remeasurement at each balance sheet date. With each remeasurement, the carrying amount is adjusted to fair value, with the change in fair value recognized in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss.

The Public Warrants are publicly traded under the symbol “BZFDW”, and the fair value of the Public Warrants at a specific date is determined by the closing price of the Public Warrants as of that date. As such, the Public Warrants are classified within Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy. The closing price of the Public Warrants was $0.98 and $0.50 as of December 3, 2021 and December 31, 2021, respectively.

As of December 31, 2021, Level 3 instruments consisted of the Company’s derivative liability related to the Notes. Fair value measurements categorized within Level 3 are sensitive to changes in the assumptions or methodologies used to determine fair value, and such changes could result in a significant increase or decrease in the fair value. To measure the fair value of the derivative liability, the Company compared the calculated value of the Notes with the indicated value of the host instrument, defined as the straight-debt component of the Notes. The difference between the value of the straight-debt host instrument and the fair value of the Notes resulted in the value of the derivative liability. The value of the straight-debt host instrument was estimated based on a binomial lattice model, excluding the conversion option and the make-whole payment upon conversion.

The following table provides quantitative information regarding the significant unobservable inputs used by the Company related to the derivative liability:


	December 31,		December 3,
	2021		2021
Term (in years)	4.9		5.0
Risk-free rate	1.25	%	1.13	%
Volatility	31.5	%	28.0	%

The following table represents the activity of the Level 3 instruments:


	Derivative
	Liability
Balance as of December 31, 2020		—
Issuance of Notes	$	31,620
Change in fair value of derivative liability		(26,745)
Balance as of December 31, 2021	$	4,875

There were no transfers between fair value measurement levels during the year ended December 31, 2021.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details

Property and Equipment, net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Property and Equipment, net

Property and Equipment, net

6. Property and Equipment, net

Property and equipment, net consisted of the following (in thousands):


	2021		2020
Leasehold improvements	$	47,573	$	49,074
Furniture and fixtures		6,029		8,027
Computer equipment		5,134		5,625
Video equipment		648		643
		59,384	$	63,369
Less: Accumulated depreciation		(36,332)		(37,824)
	$	23,052	$	25,545

Depreciation totaled $8.3 million, $8.1 million, and $8.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively, included in depreciation and amortization expense.

Capitalized Software Costs, net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Capitalized Software Costs, net

Capitalized Software Costs, net

7. Capitalized Software Costs, net

Capitalized software costs, net consisted of the following:


	2021		2020
Website and internal-use software	$	81,908	$	72,574
Less: Accumulated amortization		(65,354)		(56,014)
	$	16,554	$	16,560

During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, the Company capitalized $11.0 million, $9.8 million and $8.2 million respectively, included in Capitalized software costs and amortized $11.1 million, $9.4 million and $10.8 million, respectively, included in depreciation and amortization expense.

Goodwill and Intangibles, net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Goodwill and Intangibles, net

Goodwill and Intangibles, net

8. Goodwill and Intangibles, net

The following table presents the goodwill activities for the periods presented:


Balance as of December 31, 2020	$	—
HuffPost Acquisition		5,490
C Acquisition		189,391
Balance as of December 31, 2021	$	194,881

The following table presents the detail of intangible assets for the periods presented and the weighted average remaining useful lives:


	December 31, 2021								December 31, 2020
	Weighted-
	Average
	Remaining		Gross
	Useful Lives (in		Carrying		Accumulated		Net Carrying		Gross Carrying		Accumulated
	years)		Value		Amortization		Value		Value		Amortization		Net Carrying Value
Acquired Technology		3 years	$	10,600	$	1,745	$	8,855	$	—	$	—	$	—
Trademarks and Trade Names		15 years		111,000		1,356		109,644		—		—		—
Trademarks and Trade Names		Indefinite		1,368		—		1,368		1,368		—		1,368
Customer Relationships		4 years		17,000		354		16,646		—		—		—
Total			$	139,968	$	3,455	$	136,513	$	1,368	$	—	$	1,368

Amortization expense associated with intangible assets for the year ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 was $3.5 million and $nil, respectively, included in Depreciation and amortization expense.

Estimated future amortization expense as of December 31, 2021 is as follows (in thousands):


2022	$	15,183
2023		15,183
2024		13,438
2025		11,296
2026		7,400
Thereafter		72,645
	$	135,145

Debt

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Debt

Debt

9. Debt

Secured Facility

On May 20, 2020, the Company entered into a two-year, $20.0 million, secured borrowing facility agreement (“Secured Facility”). Borrowings under the Secured Facility were limited to 80% of qualifying accounts receivable and bore interest at a rate of LIBOR plus 7.25% per annum, subject to a LIBOR floor rate of 1.5%. Repayment of borrowings under the Secured Facility was required upon the earlier of: (i) the collection of the qualified account receivable, (ii) the maturity date of May 21, 2022, or (iii) on demand with respect to any qualified account receivable that is disputed by the payor, for which the payor has become insolvent or has indicated an inability or unwillingness to pay, or that remains uncollected more than 120 days from the original invoice date. The Secured Facility was subject to a minimum monthly average utilization of $10.0 million. Borrowings under the Secured Facility were collateralized by the Company’s personal property (including accounts receivable but excluding intellectual property). The Secured Facility included covenants that, among other things, limited the ability of the Company to incur additional indebtedness. The Company terminated the Secured Facility on December 30, 2020.

Revolving Credit Facility

On December 30, 2020, the Company entered into a new three-year, $50.0 million, revolving loan and standby letter of credit facility agreement (“Revolving Credit Facility”). The Revolving Credit Facility provides for the issuance of up to $15.5 million of standby letters of credit and aggregate borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility are generally limited to 95% of qualifying investment grade accounts receivable and 90% of qualifying non-investment grade accounts receivable, subject to adjustment at the discretion of the lenders. The Revolving Credit Facility includes covenants that, among other things, require the Company to maintain at least $25.0 million of unrestricted cash at all times, limits the ability of the Company to incur additional indebtedness, pay dividends, hold unpermitted investments, or make material changes to the business. The Company was in compliance with the financial covenant as of December 31, 2021. The $15.5 million of standby letters of credit were issued during the three months ended March 31, 2021 in favor of certain of the Company’s landlords. The Revolving Credit Facility was amended and restated in connection with the closing of the Business Combination, namely to, among other things, add the Company and certain other entities as guarantors.

Borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility bear interest at LIBOR, subject to a floor rate of 0.75%, plus a margin of 3.75% to 4.25%, depending on the level of the Company’s utilization of the facility (4.50% at December 31, 2021), and subject to a monthly minimum utilization of $15.0 million. The facility also includes an unused commitment fee of 0.375%.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company had outstanding borrowings of $28.5 million under the Revolving Credit Facility and $15.5 million of outstanding letters of credit issued under the facility. As of December 31, 2020, the Company had outstanding borrowings of $20.4 million and no letters of credit outstanding. The total unused borrowing capacity was $5.4 million and $29.6 million as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, the Company had $0.3 million and $0.5 million of costs in connection with the issuance of debt included in prepaid and other assets in the consolidated balance sheet, respectively.

Convertible Notes

In June 2021, the Company entered into subscription agreements with certain purchasers to sell $150.0 million aggregate principal amount of unsecured convertible notes due 2026. In connection with the Business Combination, the Company completed the Convertible Note Financing of $150.0 million of unsecured convertible notes. The Notes bear interest at a rate of 8.50% per annum, payable semi-annually. The Notes are convertible into shares of Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and Class A common stock, at the Company’s election, at an initial conversion price of $12.50 and mature on December 3, 2026.

The Company may, at its election, force conversion of the Notes after the third anniversary of the issuance of the Notes, subject to a holder’s prior right to convert and certain other conditions, if the volume-weighted average trading price of the BuzzFeed Class A common stock is greater than or equal to 130% of the conversion price for more than 20 trading days during a period of 30 consecutive trading days. In the event that a holder of the Notes elects to convert its Notes after the one year anniversary, and prior to the three-year anniversary, of the issuance of the Notes, the Company will be obligated to pay an amount equal to: (i) from the one year anniversary of the issuance of the Notes to the two year anniversary of the issuance of the Notes, an amount equal to 18 month’s interest declining ratably on a monthly basis to 12 month’s interest on the aggregate principal amount of the Notes so converted and (ii) from the two year anniversary of the issuance of the Notes to the three year anniversary of the issuance of the Notes, an amount equal to 12 month’s interest declining ratably on a monthly basis to zero month’s interest, in each case, on the aggregate principal amount of the note so converted (the “Interest Make-Whole Payment”). The Interest Make-Whole Payment will be payable in cash. Without limiting a holder’s right to convert the Notes at its option, interest will cease to accrue on the Notes during any period in which the Company would otherwise be entitled to force conversion of the Notes, but is not permitted to do so solely due to the failure of a trading volume condition specified in the indenture governing the Notes.

Each holder of a Note will have the right to cause the Company to repurchase for cash all or a portion of the Notes held by such holder (i) at any time after the third anniversary of the closing date, at a price equal to par plus accrued and unpaid interest; or (ii) at any time upon the occurrence of a fundamental change (as defined in the indenture governing the Notes), at a price equal to 101% of par plus accrued and unpaid interest.

The indenture governing the Notes includes restrictive covenants that, among other things, limit the Company’s ability to incur additional debt or liens, make restricted payments or investments, dispose of significant assets, transfer intellectual property, or enter into transactions with affiliates.

In accounting for the Notes, the Company bifurcated a derivative liability representing the conversion option, with a fair value at issuance of $31.6 million. To measure the fair value of the derivative liability, the Company compared the calculated value of the Notes with the indicated value of the host instrument, defined as the straight-debt component of the Notes. The difference between the value of the straight-debt host instrument and the fair value of the Notes resulted in the value of the derivative liability. The value of the straight-debt host instrument was estimated based on a binomial lattice model, excluding the conversion option and the make-whole payment upon conversion. The derivative liability is remeasured at each reporting date with the resulting gain or loss recorded in Change in fair value of derivative liability within the consolidated statements of operations.

Debt issuance costs related to the Notes totaled $6.7 million and were allocated between the debt component and derivative liability based on their relative values. Issuance costs attributable to the debt component were $5.3 million and will be amortized to interest expense using the effective interest method over the contractual term. Issuance costs attributable to the derivative liability were $1.4 million and were expensed immediately.

Interest expense on the Notes is recognized at an effective interest rate of 15% and totaled $1.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, of which amortization of the debt discount and issuance costs comprised $0.3 million.

The net carrying amount of the Notes as of December 31, 2021 was:


Principal outstanding	$	150,000
Unamortized debt discount and issuance costs		(36,627)
Balance as of December 31, 2021	$	113,373

The fair value of the Notes as of December 31, 2021 was approximately $126.0 million. The fair value of the Notes was estimated using Level 3 inputs.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for information about short-term and long-term debt arrangements, which includes amounts of borrowings under each line of credit, note payable, commercial paper issue, bonds indenture, debenture issue, own-share lending arrangements and any other contractual agreement to repay funds, and about the underlying arrangements, rationale for a classification as long-term, including repayment terms, interest rates, collateral provided, restrictions on use of assets and activities, whether or not in compliance with debt covenants, and other matters important to users of the financial statements, such as the effects of refinancing and noncompliance with debt covenants.

+ References

Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=2208564

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1B
-Subparagraph (h)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495323-112611

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1C
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495334-112611

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1I
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495371-112611

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1I
-Subparagraph (d)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495371-112611

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 235
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.4-08(c))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120395691&loc=d3e23780-122690

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1B
-Subparagraph (g)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495323-112611

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1C
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495334-112611

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1C
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495334-112611

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1E
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495348-112611

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1B
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495323-112611

Reference 12: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1I
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495371-112611

Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 470
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1B
-Subparagraph (i)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123466505&loc=SL123495323-112611

+ Details

Warrants

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Warrants

Warrants

10. Warrants

In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, the Company assumed 9,583,287 Public Warrants and 292,500 Private Warrants. The Company accounts for the warrants assumed as in accordance with the guidance contained in Derivatives and Hedging — Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (ASC 815-40). Such guidance provides that because the warrants do not meet the criteria for equity treatment thereunder, each warrant must be recorded as a liability. Accordingly, the Company classifies each warrant as a liability at its fair value. This liability is subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date. With each such remeasurement, the warrant liability is adjusted to fair value, with the change in fair value recognized in our consolidated statements of operations.

The Public Warrants are exercisable commencing 30 days after the completion of the Business Combination, provided that the Company has an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available (or the Company permits holders to exercise their Public Warrants on a cashless basis and such cashless exercise is exempt from registration under the Securities Act). The warrants have an exercise price of $11.50 per whole share, subject to adjustments, and will expire five years after the completion of the Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.

The Private Warrants are identical to the Public Warrants, except that the Private Placement Warrants and the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Private Warrants will not be transferable, assignable or saleable until 30 days after the completion of the Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the Private Warrants are non-redeemable so long as they are held by 890’s sponsor or its permitted transferees. If the Private Warrants are held by someone other than 890’s sponsor or its permitted transferees, the Private Warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.

Convertible Preferred Stock

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Convertible Preferred Stock

Convertible Preferred Stock

11.Convertible Preferred Stock


			Shares
	Year	Shares	Issued and	Issue		Liquidation
Series	Issued	Authorized⁽¹⁾	Outstanding⁽¹⁾	Price⁽¹⁾		Value
Series A	2008	10,710	10,710	$	0.33	$	3,500
Series A-1	2008	11,630	11,630	$	0.05		600
Series B	2010	13,468	13,468	$	0.59		8,000
Series C	2011	15,375	15,375	$	1.01		15,500
Series D	2012	7,383	7,383	$	2.62		19,370
Series E	2014	4,914	4,914	$	10.18		50,000
Series F	2015	15,440	15,440	$	12.95		200,000
Series G	2016	15,440	15,440	$	12.95		200,000
		94,360	94,360			$	496,970

(1)Upon the Closing of the Business Combination, the outstanding shares of Series A, A-1, B, C, D, and E Preferred Stock were converted into 63,479,988 shares of BuzzFeed Class A Common Stock at the Exchange Ratio of 0.306. Series F Preferred Stock and Series G Preferred Stock issued and outstanding converted into 30,880,000 shares of New BuzzFeed Class A Common Stock. Shares Authorized, Shares Issued and Outstanding, and Issue Price above have been retroactively adjusted to reflect this exchange.

Voting Rights

Each share of the Legacy BuzzFeed’s preferred stock was entitled to the number of votes equal to the number of shares of Class B Common Stock into which such share of preferred stock could be converted.

Dividends

Holders of shares of Legacy BuzzFeed’s preferred stock were entitled to receive noncumulative annual dividends at a rate of 8% of the applicable original issue price when, as and if declared by Legacy BuzzFeed’s board of directors. Series G and G-1 preferred stockholders of Legacy BuzzFeed were entitled to receive dividends, prior and in preference to any dividends on all other preferred stock and common stock. Series A, B, C, D, E and F preferred stockholders of Legacy BuzzFeed were entitled to receive dividends,

prior and in preference to any dividends on shares of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series A-1 preferred stock and common stock. Series A-1 preferred stockholders of Legacy BuzzFeed were entitled to receive dividends prior and in preference to any dividends on shares of the Company’s common stock. The Company has not declared or paid any cash dividends.

Conversion

Shares of Legacy BuzzFeed’s preferred stock were convertible at the option of the holders into shares of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Class B common stock as adjusted by a ten-for-one stock split effected in January 2015. Each share of preferred stock of Legacy BuzzFeed was convertible, without payment of additional consideration by the holder, into such number of fully paid and non-assessable shares of common stock as is determined by dividing the adjusted original issue price by the conversion price applicable to such share.

Each share of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series F preferred stock was convertible at the option of the holder into one share of Series F-1 preferred stock. Each share of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series G preferred stock was convertible into one share of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series G-1 preferred stock.

Liquidation Preference

In the event of any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company, including a deemed liquidation event, as defined, the holders of Series G and G-1 preferred stock of Legacy BuzzFeed were entitled to receive, on a pari passu basis and in preference to all other holders of preferred and common stock, pro rata, in an amount equal to the respective purchase price plus undeclared dividends on each share of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series G and G-1 preferred stock. Next, if proceeds remained, the holders of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series, A, B, C, D, E and F preferred stock were entitled to receive, on a pari passu basis and in preference to all remaining holders of capital stock of Legacy BuzzFeed, pro rata, an amount equal to the respective purchase price plus declared and unpaid dividends on each share of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series, A, B, C, D, E and F preferred stock. Next, if proceeds remained, the holders of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series A-1 preferred stock were entitled to receive, in preference to holders of common stock, an amount equal to the purchase price plus declared but unpaid dividends on each share of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series A-1 preferred stock. After the payment of such preferential amounts, any remaining proceeds would have been distributed pro rata among the holders of common stock.

If the proceeds were insufficient to permit payment in full to all holders of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series G and G-1, the assets would have been distributed ratably to the holders of the Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series G and G-1 preferred stock in proportion to the amount each such holder would otherwise be entitled to receive. If proceeds remained but were insufficient to permit payment in full to all holders of Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series A, B, C, D, E and F preferred stock, the assets would have been distributed ratably to the holders of the Legacy BuzzFeed’s Series A, B, C, D, E and F preferred stock in proportion to the amount each such holder would otherwise have been entitled to receive.

Redemption

Legacy BuzzFeed’s preferred stock was not redeemable and any redemption rights under the previous agreements for Series A, B, C and D preferred stock have been canceled.

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest

12.Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest

The redeemable noncontrolling interest represents the interests in BuzzFeed Japan held by Yahoo Japan, which is puttable to the Company in certain conditions, none of which were met at December 31, 2021, including material breach of the JVA by the Company or the bankruptcy or liquidation of the Company. The redeemable noncontrolling interest is presented outside of the permanent equity on the Company’s consolidated balance sheets as the put right is outside of the Company’s control. Pursuant to the terms of the original JVA, Yahoo Japan held a 49% interest in BuzzFeed Japan. On May 1, 2021, The HuffingtonPost Japan, Limited, a consolidated subsidiary, merged into BuzzFeed Japan. As a result of the merger, Yahoo Japan’s interest in the combined entity was diluted to 24.5%.

The table below presents the reconciliation of changes in redeemable noncontrolling interest:


	2021		2020		2019
Balance as of January 1,	$	848	$	28	$	(245)
Merger of BuzzFeed Japan and HuffPost Japan		510		—		—
Allocation of net (income) loss		936		820		273
Balance as of December 31,	$	2,294	$	848	$	28

Stockholders' Equity

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Stockholders' Equity

Stockholders' Equity

13.Stockholders’ Equity

Common Stock

In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, the Company authorized the issuance of 700,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 10,000,000 shares of Class C common stock, par value $0.0001 per share. Each share of Class A common stock is entitled to one vote and each share of Class B common stock is entitled to fifty votes. Class C common stock is non-voting.

Preferred Stock

In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, the Company authorized the issuance of 50,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. The board of directors is authorized, without further stockholder approval, to issue such preferred stock in one or more series, to fix the voting rights, if any, designations, powers, preferences, the relative, participating, optional or other special rights and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, applicable to the shares of each series. There were no issued and outstanding shares of preferred stock as of December 31, 2021.

Stock-Based Compensation

Stock Incentive Plans

The Company’s 2008 Stock Plan (the “2008 Plan”) was adopted on June 25, 2008. The Company’s 2015 Equity Incentive Plan (“2015 Plan”) was adopted on October 30, 2015 and superseded the 2008 plan. The 2015 Plan increased the number of Legacy BuzzFeed shares available for grant and issuance to 16,895,765. The 2015 Plan allowed for the grant of incentive and nonqualified stock options, restricted stock units (“RSUs”), and stock appreciation rights to eligible participants.

On October 16, 2018, the 2015 Plan was amended to increase the maximum number of shares of Legacy BuzzFeed common stock available for issuance by 15,700,000. At the time the Equity Incentive Plan (defined below) became effective, 32,595,765 shares of Legacy BuzzFeed common stock had been authorized for issuance under the 2015 Plan. From and after the effectiveness of the Equity Incentive Plan, no additional awards will be granted under the 2015 Plan. Upon the closing of the Business Combination, all outstanding Legacy BuzzFeed stock options under the 2015 Plan and 2008 Plan, whether vested or unvested, were substituted and converted into options to purchase shares of Class A common stock granted in accordance with the Equity Inventive Plan based on the exchange ratio of 0.306. All outstanding Legacy BuzzFeed RSUs under the 2015 Plan and 2008 Plan were substituted and converted into RSUs representing the opportunity to be issued shares of Class A common stock granted in accordance with the Equity Incentive Plan based on the exchange ratio of 0.306.

In December 2021, the Equity Incentive Plan was adopted by the 890 board and approved by the 890 stockholders prior to closing of the Business Combination and it became effective on the closing of the Business Combination. The Equity Incentive Plan allows the Company to grant awards of stock options, restricted stock awards, stock appreciation rights ("SARs"), RSUs, cash awards, performance awards, and stock bonus awards to officers, employees, directors and consultants. A total of 31,206,550 shares of Class A common stock were reserved for issuance under the Equity Incentive Plan. The number of shares reserved for issuance under the Equity Incentive Plan will increase automatically on January 1 of each year from 2022 through 2031 by the number of shares equal to the lesser of 5% of the total number of outstanding shares of all classes of common stock as of the immediately preceding December 31, or a number as may be determined by the board of directors.

Stock Options

A summary of the stock option activity under the Company's equity incentive plans is presented below:


		Weighted		Weighted
		Average		Average
	Number of	Exercise		Remaining	Aggregate
	Shares⁽¹⁾	Price⁽¹⁾		Term	Intrinsic Value
Balance as of December 31, 2020	9,822	$	6.41	5.01	$	19,248
Granted	621		9.11
Exercised	(2,393)		2.95
Forfeited	(2,392)		9.71
Expired	(1,098)		8.79
Balance as of December 31, 2021	4,560	$	6.29	3.07	$	2,670
Expected to vest at December 31, 2021	4,560	$	6.29	3.07	$	2,670
Exercisable at December 31, 2021	3,895	$	5.83	2.08	$	2,670

(1)Number of shares and weighted average exercise price have been retroactively adjusted to give effect to the exchange ratio of 0.306.

Options are generally granted for a term of 10 years from the date of grant. Options granted under the plans may be exercised prior to vesting. Stock options generally vest over four years based on service.

The fair value of stock option awards is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model based upon the following range of assumptions:


	2021	2020(1)	2019(1)
Exercise price	$8.99 – $9.25	$7.48 – $8.33	$8.30 – $8.33
Expected dividend yield	0%	0%	0%
Expected volatility	45% – 48%	41% – 46%	38% – 39%
Expected term (years)	5.00 – 6.07	5.55 – 6.07	5.80 – 6.09
Risk free interest rate	0.80% – 1.04%	0.26% – 1.17%	1.58% – 2.35%

(1)Exercise prices have been retroactively adjusted to give effect to the exchange ratio of 0.306.

The Company uses the simplified method in accordance with the applicable authoritative guidance to estimate the expected term of the option, due to the limited historical experience to date. The risk-free rate for the expected term of the option is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. Since the Company’s common stock is not publicly traded for a sufficient time period, the expected volatility is based on expected volatilities of similar companies that have a history of being publicly traded. No dividends have been assumed.

The Company records stock-based compensation expense on a straight-line basis over the vesting period. As of December 31, 2021, the total share-based compensation costs not yet recognized related to unvested stock options was $2.2 million, which is expected to be recognized over the weighted-average remaining requisite service period of 1.3 years. The weighted average fair value of stock options granted during December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 was $1.23, $1.03, and $1.01 respectively. The intrinsic value of stock options exercised was $13.8 million, $0.4 million, and $1.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Restricted Stock Units

A summary of RSU activity is presented below:


		Weighted Average
		Grant-Date Fair
	Shares⁽¹⁾	Value⁽¹⁾
Outstanding as of December 31, 2020	2,530	$	8.53
Granted	3,011		9.11
Vested	(4)		9.25
Forfeited	(302)		8.33
Outstanding as of December 31, 2021	5,235	$	8.88

(1)Shares and weighted average grant-date fair value have been retroactively adjusted to give effect to the exchange ratio of 0.306.

As of December 31, 2021, there was approximately $29.1 million of unrecognized compensation costs related to RSUs. Included in the above are 2.5 million RSUs that vest based on service and upon the occurrence of a sale transaction ("Acquisition") or the completion of an initial public offering. The Two-Step Merger did not result in the satisfaction of this liquidity condition as it does not meet the definition of an Acquisition per the award agreements. Unrecognized compensation costs related to these RSUs totaled $21.2 million at December 31, 2021.

The closing of the Two-Step Merger satisfied the liquidity condition in 2.7 million RSUs. As a result, $16.0 million of compensation cost associated with service rendered prior to the Two-Step Merger was recognized at Closing. $2.2 million, $4.4 million, $8.7 million, and $0.8 million of this was reflected in cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization, sales and marketing, general and administrative, and research and development within the consolidated statement of operations, respectively.

Escrowed Shares

In connection with the Business Combination, our Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Jonah Peretti, Jonah Peretti, LLC, NBCUniversal Media, LLC (“NBCU”) and PNC Bank National Association, entered into an escrow agreement (the “Escrow Agreement”). The Escrow Agreement provides for, among other things, the escrow of 1,200,000 shares of New BuzzFeed Class A common stock or New BuzzFeed Class B common stock (the “Escrowed Shares”) exchangeable by Jonah Peretti, LLC in connection with the Two-Step Merger. Pursuant to the Escrow Agreement, in the event the Transfer Date SPAC Share Price (as defined in the Escrow Agreement) is less than $12.50 per share on the Transfer Date (as defined in the Escrow Agreement), Jonah Peretti, LLC and NBCU shall instruct the escrow agent to transfer (1) to NBCU a number of Escrowed Shares equal to the Make Whole Shares (as defined in the Escrow Agreement) and (2) to Mr. Peretti, the remainder of the Escrowed Shares, if any. If the Transfer Date SPAC Share Price is equal to or greater than $12.50 on the Transfer Date, Jonah Peretti, LLC and NBCU shall instruct the escrow agent to transfer all of the Escrowed Shares to Mr. Peretti.

The Escrow Agreement was accounted for as a compensatory stock-based compensation award with a market condition. As there are no future service conditions, the $5.4 million fair value of the award was recognized within general and administrative expense at the time of closing of the Business Combination. The fair value was estimated using a model based on multiple stock price paths developed through the use of a Monte Carlo simulation that incorporates into the valuation the likelihood that the market condition will be satisfied.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for shareholders' equity comprised of portions attributable to the parent entity and noncontrolling interest, including other comprehensive income. Includes, but is not limited to, balances of common stock, preferred stock, additional paid-in capital, other capital and retained earnings, accumulated balance for each classification of other comprehensive income and amount of comprehensive income.

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+ Details

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

14.Net Income (Loss) Per Share

Net income (loss) per share is computed using the two-class method. Basic net income (loss) per share is computed using the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding for the period. Diluted net income (loss) per share reflects the effect of the assumed exercise of stock options, the vesting of restricted stock units, the exercise of warrants, the conversion of the Notes, and the conversion of convertible preferred stock only in the periods in which such effect would have been dilutive.

Undistributed earnings were allocated to convertible preferred stock and shares of Class A common stock, Class B common stock, and Class C common stock based on the contractual participation rights of each as if earnings for the year had been distributed. Holders of convertible preferred stock were entitled to noncumulative annual dividends at a rate of 8% of the applicable original issue price when, as and if declared by the Company’s board of directors and prior to and in preference of payment of dividends on the Company’s common stock. Thereafter, dividends were distributed among holders of Class A common stock, Class B common stock

and convertible preferred stock on a proportionate basis, based on the number of shares of common stock that would be held by each holder if all shares of convertible preferred stock were converted to Class B common stock at the then effective conversion rate.

Holders of convertible preferred stock did not participate in losses and, accordingly, losses for the year ended December 31, 2019 were allocated entirely to holders of Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock. For the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, net loss per share amounts were the same for Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock because the holders of each class are entitled to equal per share dividends.

The table below presents the computation of basic and diluted net income (loss) per share:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Numerator:
Net income (loss)	$	25,876	$	11,156	$	(36,919)
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interest		936		820		273
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		228
Allocation of undistributed earnings to convertible preferred stock		24,712		10,336		—
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock for basic net income (loss) per share	$	—	$	—	$	(37,192)
Add: interest on Notes		1,317		—		—
Deduct: change in fair value of derivative liability		(26,745)		—		—
Reallocation of undistributed earnings to convertible preferred stock		24,712		—		—
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock for diluted net income (loss) per share	$	(716)	$	—	$	(37,192)
Denominator:
Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic		27,048		11,942		11,804
Impact of assumed conversion of Notes		953		—		—
Weighted average common shares outstanding, diluted		28,001		11,942		11,804

Net income (loss) per common share, basic	$	0.00	$	0.00	$	(3.15)
Net income (loss) per common share, diluted	$	(0.03)	$	0.00	$	(3.15)

The table below presents the details of securities that were excluded from the calculation of diluted net income (loss) per share as the effect would have been anti-dilutive:


	2021	2020	2019
Stock options	4,560	9,831	10,715
Restricted stock units	2,779	—	—
Warrants	9,876	—	—
Convertible preferred stock	—	94,360	94,360

Additionally, the calculation of diluted net income (loss) per share excluded 2.4 million, 2.5 million, and 2.6 million restricted stock units at December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively, for which the related liquidity condition had not been met.

Income Taxes

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Income Taxes

Income Taxes

15.Income Taxes

The domestic and foreign components of income (loss) before provision for income taxes were as follows:


	2021		2020		2019
Domestic	$	(301)	$	12,837	$	(29,247)
Foreign		(227)		(740)		(8,030)
Total (loss) income before income taxes	$	(528)	$	12,097	$	(37,277)

The provision (benefit) for income taxes consisted of the following:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Current (benefit) / provision
Federal	$	(16)	$	(16)	$	(7)
State		112		188		20
Foreign		1,666		657		(370)
Total current (benefit) / provision	$	1,762		829	$	(357)
Deferred (benefit) / provision
Federal	$	(23,020)	$	7	$	1
State		(2,682)		4		7
Foreign		(2,464)		101		(9)
Total deferred (benefit) / provision	$	(28,166)		112	$	(1)
Total (benefit) / provision
Federal	$	(23,036)	$	(9)	$	(6)
State		(2,570)		192		27
Foreign		(798)		758		(379)
Total (benefit) / provision	$	(26,404)	$	941	$	(358)

A reconciliation of the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate of 21% for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 to the Company’s effective tax rate is as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Income tax (benefit) provision at the U.S. federal statutory rate	$	(111)	$	2,540	$	(7,828)
State income taxes		(519)		323		(543)
Permanent differences		292		(53)		521
Change in valuation allowance		(18,572)		(3,720)		6,258
Effect of foreign operations		(825)		325		373
Stock-based compensation		(838)		198		478
Transaction costs		1,262		—		—
Derivative liability		(6,612)		—		—
Effect of change in tax rates		(835)		(253)		(320)
Sale of foreign subsidiary		—		1,323		—
Research & development tax credits		(501)		(253)		(922)
Foreign currency translation & transactions		254		144		33
Prior period adjustments		—		230		1,210
Other		601		137		382
Total provision (benefit) for income taxes	$	(26,404)	$	941	$	(358)

For the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, the Company’s effective tax rate was 5,000.8%, 7.8% and 1.0% respectively.For the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company’s effective tax rate differed from the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate of 21% primarily related to the partial release of the Company’s U.S. valuation allowance as a result of certain business combinations consummated during 2021. The Company recorded excess deferred tax liabilities related to the business combinations which provided a source of future taxable income to support partial realization of the Company’s pre-existing deferred tax assets. The income tax benefit related to the change in valuation allowance was offset by an income tax provision for foreign taxes. For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, the Company’s effective tax rate differed from the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate of 21% primarily due to a valuation allowance against net deferred tax assets that were not realizable on a more-likely-than-not basis.

On March 27, 2020, the U.S. government enacted the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act. The CARES Act included several measures to assist companies including temporary changes to income and non-income based tax laws. Several significant tax-related provisions of the CARES Act included (1) allowing net operating loss (NOL) carryforwards originating in 2018, 2019 or 2020 to be carried back to the prior five tax years, (2) eliminating the 80% taxable income limitation by allowing corporate entities to fully utilize NOL carryforwards to offset taxable income in 2018, 2019 or 2020, (3) increasing the net interest expense deduction limitation to 50% of adjusted taxable income from 30% for the 2019 and 2020 tax years, (4) allowing taxpayers with

alternative minimum tax credits to claim a refund in 2020 for the entire amount of the credit instead of recovering the credit through refunds over a period of years and (5) allowing companies to deduct more of their cash charitable contributions paid during calendar year 2020 by increasing the taxable income limitation to 25% from 10%. The income tax provisions of the CARES Act had limited applicability to the Company and did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Significant components of deferred tax assets and liabilities as of were as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020
Deferred tax assets
Net operating loss carryforwards	$	93,592	$	79,475
Accruals		3,503		2,879
Stock-based compensation		6,380		2,841
Bad debt		241		262
Deferred rent		4,167		5,043
Interest expense		735
Other		691		1,185
Total deferred tax asset	$	109,309	$	91,685
Valuation allowance		(66,848)		(83,978)
Net deferred tax asset	$	42,461	$	7,707

Deferred tax liabilities
Deferred state income tax		(1,596)		(2,087)
Depreciation and amortization		(1,905)		(1,720)
Intangible assets		(37,352)		(3,905)
Total deferred tax liability	$	(40,853)	$	(7,712)
Net deferred tax asset (liability)	$	1,608	$	(5)

Net deferred tax assets are included within prepaid and other assets and net deferred tax liabilities are included within other liabilities on the Company’s consolidated balance sheets.

In assessing the realizability of its deferred tax assets, the Company considered whether it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Based upon the weight of available evidence, the Company concluded it is more likely than not that it will not be able to realize its U.S. deferred tax assets and therefore has maintained a full valuation allowance on its U.S. deferred tax assets. In addition, the Company maintains a valuation allowance against certain deferred tax assets in the UK, Spain, Japan and Canada. The Company’s valuation allowance decreased by approximately $17.1 million in 2021.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company has U.S. federal and state net operating losses of approximately $314.5 million and $11.3 million, respectively. Of the $314.5 million of U.S. federal net operating losses, $201.5 million expire in tax year beginning 2030 through 2039 if not utilized and $113.0 that has an indefinite lived carryforward period. The $11.3 million of state net operating losses will expire in tax years beginning in 2025 to 2041 if not utilized. As of December 31, 2021, the Company has foreign net operating loss carryforwards of $29.2 million which will begin to expire in 2026. Utilization of net operating losses and tax credit carryforwards are subject to certain limitations under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, in the event of a change in the Company’s ownership, as defined in current income tax regulations.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company has deferred interest expense carryforwards under IRC Section 163(j) of $3.2 million which may be carried forward indefinitely but only available to offset 30% of tax adjusted EBIT. In addition, the Company had federal research and development tax credits of approximately $8.1 million, which expire in the tax years beginning in 2032 through 2041, if not utilized.

Notwithstanding the current taxation of certain foreign subsidiaries under GILTI and one-time transition taxation enacted as part of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act, the Company intends to continue to reinvest its foreign earnings indefinitely outside the U.S. If these future earnings are repatriated to the U.S., or if the Company determines that such earnings will be remitted in the foreseeable future, the Company may be required to accrue U.S. deferred taxes (if any) and applicable withholding taxes. It is not practicable to estimate

the tax impact of the reversal of the outside basis difference, or the repatriation of cash due to the complexity of its hypothetical calculation.

The Company applies the applicable authoritative guidance which prescribes a comprehensive model in which a company should recognize, measure, present and disclose in its financial statements all material uncertain tax positions that the Company has taken or expects to take on a tax return. The Company recognizes interest and penalties related to income tax positions taken on the Company’s tax returns in income tax expense in the consolidated statements of operations. As of December 31, 2021, the Company recorded an uncertain tax position of $nil including interest and penalties related to state taxes. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the Company had no uncertain tax positions.

The Company, or one of its subsidiaries, files its tax returns in the U.S. and certain state and foreign income tax jurisdictions with varying statute of limitations. The earliest years’ tax returns filed by the Company that are still subject to examination by the tax authorities in the major jurisdictions are as follows:


		Years
United States		2017
United Kingdom		2020
Japan		2016
Canada		2018

- Definition

The entire disclosure for income taxes. Disclosures may include net deferred tax liability or asset recognized in an enterprise's statement of financial position, net change during the year in the total valuation allowance, approximate tax effect of each type of temporary difference and carryforward that gives rise to a significant portion of deferred tax liabilities and deferred tax assets, utilization of a tax carryback, and tax uncertainties information.

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-URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=2144680

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 30
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6424122&loc=d3e41874-109331

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 235
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.4-08(h)(2))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120395691&loc=d3e23780-122690

+ Details

Restructuring Costs

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Restructuring Costs

Restructuring Costs

16.Restructuring Costs

On March 9, 2021, the Company announced a restructuring of HuffPost, including employee terminations, in order to efficiently integrate the HuffPost Acquisition and establish an efficient cost structure. The Company incurred approximately $3.6 million in severance costs related to the restructuring, of which $3.2 million were included in cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization, $0.3 million were included in sales and marketing, and $0.1 million were included in research and development.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company incurred $9.6 million in restructuring costs, of which $4.4 million were included in cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization, $2.2 million were included in general and administrative, $1.6 million were included in sales and marketing, and $1.4 million were included in research and development.

At December 31, 2021 and 2020, there were no liabilities related to restructuring.

Commitments and Contingencies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Commitments and Contingencies.

Commitments and Contingencies

17.Commitments and Contingencies

Commitments

The Company leases office space under non-cancelable operating leases with various expiration dates through 2029. The Company’s lease agreements generally do not contain any material residual value guarantees or material restrictive covenants. Certain of the Company’s lease agreements include escalating lease payments. Additionally, certain lease agreements contain renewal provisions and other provisions which require the Company to pay taxes, insurance, or maintenance costs. Rent expense for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 were $18.5 million, $25.7 million and $24.8 million respectively.

Future minimum lease payments under leases having initial or remaining non-cancelable lease terms in excess of one year as of December 31, 2021 are as follows:


Year	Amount
2022	$	33,817
2023		31,910
2024		23,885
2025		21,148
2026		8,441
Thereafter		2,642
	$	121,843

The Company subleases certain leased office space to third parties when it determines there is excess leased capacity. Sublease rent income is recognized as an offset to rent expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term. In addition to sublease rent, other costs such as common-area maintenance, utilities, and real estate taxes are charged to subtenants over the duration of the lease for their proportionate share of these costs.

Sublease income for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 were $6.8 million, $6.1 million and $2.7 million respectively. Sublease receipts to be received in the future under noncancelable sublease as of December 31, 2021 are as follows:


Year	Amount
2022	$	6,769
2023		6,940
2024		7,280
2025		7,360
2026		2,929
Thereafter		215
	$	31,493

Guarantees

In September 2018, at the time of its equity investment in a private company, the Company agreed to guarantee the lease of the investee’s premises in New York. In October 2020, the investee renewed its lease agreement, and the Company’s prior guarantee was replaced with a new guarantee of up to $5.4 million. The amount of the guarantee is reduced as the investee makes payments under the lease. As of December 31, 2021, the maximum amount of the guarantee was $2.7 million, and no liability was recognized with respect to the guarantee.

In the course of business, the Company both provides and receives indemnities which are intended to allocate certain risks associated with business transactions. Similarly, the Company may remain contingently liable for various obligations of a business that has been divested in the event that a third party does not fulfill its obligations under an indemnification obligation. The Company records a liability for indemnification obligations and other contingent liabilities when probable and reasonably estimable.

Legal Matters

The Company is party to various lawsuits and claims in the ordinary course of business. Although the outcome of such matters cannot be predicted with certainty and the impact that the final resolution of such matters will ultimately have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements is not known, we do not believe that the resolution of these matters will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s future results of operations or cash flows.

The Company settled or resolved certain legal matters during the fiscal years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 that did not individually or in the aggregate have a material impact on the Company’s business or its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Segment Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Segment Information

Segment Information

18.Segment Information

Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise about which separate financial information is available that is evaluated regularly by the chief operating decision maker (“CODM”), in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing performance.

The Company has determined that its chief executive officer (“CEO”) is its CODM who makes resource allocation decisions and assesses performance based upon financial information at the consolidated level. The Company manages its operations as a single segment for the purpose of assessing and making operating decisions. Since the Company operates in one operating segment, all required financial segment information can be found in the consolidated financial statements.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for reporting segments including data and tables. Reportable segments include those that meet any of the following quantitative thresholds a) it's reported revenue, including sales to external customers and intersegment sales or transfers is 10 percent or more of the combined revenue, internal and external, of all operating segments b) the absolute amount of its reported profit or loss is 10 percent or more of the greater, in absolute amount of 1) the combined reported profit of all operating segments that did not report a loss or 2) the combined reported loss of all operating segments that did report a loss c) its assets are 10 percent or more of the combined assets of all operating segments.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 31
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8924-108599

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 34
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8981-108599

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 21
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8721-108599

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 40
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e9031-108599

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (f)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (e)
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Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
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-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8844-108599

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 41
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e9038-108599

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (d)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 22
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8736-108599

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
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-Paragraph 42
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e9054-108599

Reference 12: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 15
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8657-108599

Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 21
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8721-108599

Reference 14: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=2134510

+ Details

Related party Transactions

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Related Party Transactions

Related Party Transactions

19.Related Party Transactions

In June 2021, BuzzFeed entered into a Commercial Agreement with NBCU, a holder of at least 5% of Class A common stock, pursuant to which, among other things, effective on the closing of the Business Combination: (1) NBCU will continue to be entitled to

marketing services on BuzzFeed platforms at certain discounted rates; (2) BuzzFeed will provide editorial promotion of at least $1.0 million in marketing value during each year of the term of the Commercial Agreement across BuzzFeed’s digital properties at no cost to NBCU, its affiliates and joint ventures and their respective brands; (3) BuzzFeed will provide licensed content to NBCU to be made available on an applicable NBCU entity streaming service under certain exclusivity terms during the remainder of the term of the Commercial Agreement; (4) NBCU shall be the exclusive sales representative for all BuzzFeed inventory, including HuffPost inventory, on Apple News and BuzzFeed shall endeavor to spend at least $1.0 million during the first year of the term of the Commercial Agreement to promote any of its commerce initiatives; and (5) BuzzFeed will provide 200 million impressions per year of the term of the Commercial Agreement to drive traffic from the BuzzFeed platforms and third-party social media platforms to NBCU news properties. The Commercial Agreement shall continue to be in effect for a period of three years, unless earlier terminated by either party in accordance with its terms and conditions, or until terminated by BuzzFeed as of the date that NBCU realizes $400.0 million or more in value for the NBCU Base Shares (as defined in the Escrow Agreement).

The Company also entered into certain partnership agreements with NBCU in 2018, 2019, and 2020.

The Company recognized revenue from NBCU of $2.9 million, $3.6 million and $9.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively. The Company recognized expenses under contractual obligations from NBCU of $1.1 million, $0.8 million and $0.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The Company had outstanding receivable balances of $1.2 million and $nil from NBCU as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The Company had outstanding payable balances of $0.3 million and $nil to NBCU as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

In September 2018, the Company invested $1.8 million in the equity of a private company. At the time of investment, an executive of BuzzFeed was the controlling stockholder of the investee. Effective August 26, 2019 the Company and the former executive entered into a consultancy arrangement whereby the Company engaged the former executive to provide advice and counsel. During the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company incurred $0.4 million in respect of such consultancy charges. The agreement expired on March 31, 2020. The Company earned revenue under an agreement with the investee of $0.5 million and $1.4 million during the years ended December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively, and incurred costs under contractual obligations from the investee of $nil million, $0.2 million, and $2.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2021, December 31, 2020, and December 31, 2019, respectively. These costs are included in the consolidated statements of operations in cost of revenue. The Company had outstanding receivable balances of $nil million and $0.9 from the investee as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Additionally, the Company has guaranteed a lease of the investee. Refer to Note 17 for further details.

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

20. Supplemental Cash Flow Information


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Cash paid for income taxes, net	$	1,228	$	83	$	415
Cash paid for interest		901		1,096		270
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Accounts payable and accrued expenses related to property and equipment		306		129		187
Issuance of common stock for HuffPost Acquisition		24,064		—		—
Issuance of common stock for C Acquisition		96,200		—		—
Warrants assumed as part of the business combination		9,678		—		—
Accrued reverse recapitalization costs		585		—		—

Subsequent Events

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Subsequent Events.

Subsequent Events

21. Subsequent Events

On March 22, 2022, in connection with the acquisition of Complex Networks, the Company approved certain organizational changes to align sales and marketing and general and administrative functions as well as changes in content to better serve audience demands.The Company expects to record total pre-tax restructuring charges of approximately $1.7 million, comprised mainly of severance and related benefit costs. The restructuring actions associated with this charge are expected to be substantially complete in Q1 2022.

Additionally, on March 22, 2022, as part of a strategic repositioning of BuzzFeed News, the Company shared with NewsGuild, the representative of the BuzzFeed News bargaining unit, a voluntary buyout proposal covering certain desks. That proposal will be negotiated as part of collective bargaining. The Company has not yet shared its voluntary buyout proposal with non-unit BuzzFeed News employees, but it plans to do so. Employees who meet the eligibility requirements for the voluntary buyout will have 45 days to accept the Company’s offer after it has been formally communicated.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Polices)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Financial Statements and Principles of Consolidation

Use of Estimates

Fair Value Measurements

The fair value framework under the applicable authoritative guidance requires the categorization of assets and liabilities into three levels:

●

Level 1 — inputs are quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities

●

Level 3 — inputs are generally unobservable inputs and typically reflect management’s best estimate of assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability.

Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash

The following table summarizes cash and cash equivalent and restricted cash in the consolidated balance sheets (in thousands):


	2021		2020
Cash and cash equivalents	$	79,733	$	90,626
Restricted cash		—		15,500
Total	$	79,733	$	106,126

Accounts Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

The change in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts was as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Balance as of January 1,	$	1,387	$	1,122	$	1,055
Additions		703		1,208		449
Write-offs, net of recoveries		(996)		(943)		(382)
Balance as of December 31,	$	1,094	$	1,387	$	1,122

Film Costs


	2021		2020
Individual Monetization:
Feature films in production	$	3,690	$	2,086
Total	$	3,690	$	2,086

Property and Equipment


		Useful Life (Years)
Furniture and fixtures		5
Leasehold improvements		7 – 11
Computer equipment		3
Video equipment		3

Capitalized Software Costs

enhancements, generally 1 to 3 years. Costs incurred in the preliminary and post-implementation stages of the Company’s products are expensed as incurred.

Investments

Evaluation of Long-Lived Assets and Impairment

Revenue Recognition

Advertising

Content

Commerce

Cost of Revenue

Sales and Marketing

General and Administrative

Research and Development

Income Taxes

The Company made a policy election to treat the income tax with respect to GILTI as a period expense when incurred.

Stock-Based Compensation

The following table summarizes stock-based compensation cost included in the consolidated statements of operations:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization	$	2,788	$	109	$	353
Sales and marketing		4,829		60		658
General and administrative		15,052		977		1,446
Research and development		896		43		356
	$	23,565	$	1,189	$	2,813

The Company recognized no income tax benefit in the consolidated statements of operations for stock-based compensation arrangements in 2021, 2020 or 2019.

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

Foreign Currency

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

Description of the Business (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Description of the Business

Summary of proceeds raised and issuance costs incurred in relation to business comnination


Cash from reverse recapitalization	$	16,167
890 reverse recapitalization costs		(13,795)
BuzzFeed reverse recapitalization costs		(14,609)
Accrued reverse recapitalization costs		585
Net proceeds from reverse recapitalization	$	(11,652)

Proceeds from Notes	$	150,000
Issuance costs		(6,757)
Issuance costs settled in stock		563
Proceeds from issuance of Notes, net of issuance costs	$	143,806

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Schedule of cash and cash equivalent and restricted cash

The following table summarizes cash and cash equivalent and restricted cash in the consolidated balance sheets (in thousands):


	2021		2020
Cash and cash equivalents	$	79,733	$	90,626
Restricted cash		—		15,500
Total	$	79,733	$	106,126

Schedule of allowance for doubtful accounts

The change in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts was as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Balance as of January 1,	$	1,387	$	1,122	$	1,055
Additions		703		1,208		449
Write-offs, net of recoveries		(996)		(943)		(382)
Balance as of December 31,	$	1,094	$	1,387	$	1,122

Schedule of stock-based compensation

The following table summarizes stock-based compensation cost included in the consolidated statements of operations:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization	$	2,788	$	109	$	353
Sales and marketing		4,829		60		658
General and administrative		15,052		977		1,446
Research and development		896		43		356
	$	23,565	$	1,189	$	2,813

Schedule of Film Capitalized Cost [Table Text Block]


	2021		2020
Individual Monetization:
Feature films in production	$	3,690	$	2,086
Total	$	3,690	$	2,086

Schedule of Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life [Table Text Block]


		Useful Life (Years)
Furniture and fixtures		5
Leasehold improvements		7 – 11
Computer equipment		3
Video equipment		3

Acquisitions and Dispositions (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

C Acquisition

Acquisitions and Dispositions

Schedule of fair value of consideration exchanged


Cash consideration⁽¹⁾	$	197,966
Share consideration⁽²⁾		96,200
Total consideration	$	294,166

Schedule of purchase price allocation for the assets acquired and liabilities assumed


Cash		2,881
Accounts receivable		22,581
Prepaid and other current assets		17,827
Property and equipment		332
Intangible assets		119,100
Goodwill		189,391
Accounts payable		(2,661)
Accrued expenses		(12,319)
Accrued compensation		(12,867)
Deferred revenue		(5,855)
Deferred tax liabilities		(22,776)
Other liabilities		(1,468)
Total consideration for Complex Networks		294,166

Schedule of estimated fair value of each of the identifiable intangible assets


		Weighted Average
	Asset Fair Value	Useful Life (Years)
Trademarks & tradenames	97,000	15
Customer relationships	17,000	4
Developed technology	5,100	3

Schedule of Company's pro forma combined revenues and net income


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020
Revenue	$	521,224	$	446,368
Net loss		(19,747)		(12,972)

HuffPost and Verizon Investment

Acquisitions and Dispositions

Schedule of fair value of consideration exchanged


Fair value of common stock issued⁽¹⁾	$	24,064
Working capital adjustments		(490)
Total consideration	$	23,574

Schedule of purchase price allocation for the assets acquired and liabilities assumed


			Measurement
			Period
	Preliminary		Adjustments		Final
Cash and cash equivalents		5,513		—		5,513
Accounts receivable		3,383		—		3,383
Prepaid and other current assets		611		—		611
Deferred tax assets		116		15		131
Property and equipment		620		—		620
Intangible assets		19,500		—		19,500
Goodwill		5,927		(437)		5,490
Accounts payable		(1,410)		—		(1,410)
Accrued expenses		(4,249)		—		(4,249)
Deferred tax liabilities		(4,251)		422		(3,829)
Other liabilities		(63)		—		(63)
Noncontrolling interests		(2,123)		—		(2,123)
Total consideration for HuffPost	$	23,574	$	—	$	23,574

Revenue Recognition (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Revenue Recognition

Schedule of disaggregation of revenue


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Advertising	$	205,794	$	149,704	$	128,438
Content		130,200		119,846		150,876
Commerce and other		61,570		51,774		38,609
	$	397,564	$	321,324	$	317,923

The following table presents the Company’s revenue disaggregated by geography:


	2021		2020		2019
Revenue:
United States	$	352,280	$	292,107	$	287,723
International		45,284		29,217		30,200
Total	$	397,564	$	321,324	$	317,923

Fair Value Measurements (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Fair Value Measurements

Schedule of fair value measurements

The Company’s financial assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis are summarized below:


	December 31, 2021
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Assets:
Cash equivalents:
Money market funds	$	1	$	—	$	—	$	1
Total	$	1	$	—	$	—	$	1
Liabilities:
Derivative liability	$	—	$	—	$	4,875	$	4,875
Other non-current liabilities:
Public Warrants		4,792		—		—		4,792
Private Warrants		—		146		—		146
Total	$	4,792	$	146	$	4,875	$	9,813


	December 31, 2020
	Level 1		Level 2	Level 3	Total
Assets:
Cash equivalents:
Money market funds	$	24,460	—	—	$	24,460
Total	$	24,460	—	—	$	24,460
Liabilities:
Derivative liability		—	—	—		—
Other non-current liabilities:
Public Warrants		—	—	—		—
Private Warrants		—	—	—		—
Total		—	—	—		—

Schedule of quantitative information regarding the significant unobservable inputs used by the Company related to the derivative liability


	December 31,		December 3,
	2021		2021
Term (in years)	4.9		5.0
Risk-free rate	1.25	%	1.13	%
Volatility	31.5	%	28.0	%

Schedule of activity of the Level 3 instruments


	Derivative
	Liability
Balance as of December 31, 2020		—
Issuance of Notes	$	31,620
Change in fair value of derivative liability		(26,745)
Balance as of December 31, 2021	$	4,875

Property and Equipment, net (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Property and Equipment, net

Summary of property and equipment, net

Property and equipment, net consisted of the following (in thousands):


	2021		2020
Leasehold improvements	$	47,573	$	49,074
Furniture and fixtures		6,029		8,027
Computer equipment		5,134		5,625
Video equipment		648		643
		59,384	$	63,369
Less: Accumulated depreciation		(36,332)		(37,824)
	$	23,052	$	25,545

Capitalized Software Costs, net (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Capitalized Software Costs, net

Schedule of capitalized software costs


	2021		2020
Website and internal-use software	$	81,908	$	72,574
Less: Accumulated amortization		(65,354)		(56,014)
	$	16,554	$	16,560

Goodwill and Intangibles, net (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Goodwill and Intangibles, net

Summary of goodwill activities


Balance as of December 31, 2020	$	—
HuffPost Acquisition		5,490
C Acquisition		189,391
Balance as of December 31, 2021	$	194,881

Summary of intangible assets and the weighted average remaining useful lives


	December 31, 2021								December 31, 2020
	Weighted-
	Average
	Remaining		Gross
	Useful Lives (in		Carrying		Accumulated		Net Carrying		Gross Carrying		Accumulated
	years)		Value		Amortization		Value		Value		Amortization		Net Carrying Value
Acquired Technology		3 years	$	10,600	$	1,745	$	8,855	$	—	$	—	$	—
Trademarks and Trade Names		15 years		111,000		1,356		109,644		—		—		—
Trademarks and Trade Names		Indefinite		1,368		—		1,368		1,368		—		1,368
Customer Relationships		4 years		17,000		354		16,646		—		—		—
Total			$	139,968	$	3,455	$	136,513	$	1,368	$	—	$	1,368

Schedule of Estimated future amortization expense

Estimated future amortization expense as of December 31, 2021 is as follows (in thousands):


2022	$	15,183
2023		15,183
2024		13,438
2025		11,296
2026		7,400
Thereafter		72,645
	$	135,145

Debt (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Related Party Transactions

Schedule of net carrying amount of the notes

The net carrying amount of the Notes as of December 31, 2021 was:


Principal outstanding	$	150,000
Unamortized debt discount and issuance costs		(36,627)
Balance as of December 31, 2021	$	113,373

Convertible Preferred Stock (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Convertible Preferred Stock

Schedule of convertible preferred stock


			Shares
	Year	Shares	Issued and	Issue		Liquidation
Series	Issued	Authorized⁽¹⁾	Outstanding⁽¹⁾	Price⁽¹⁾		Value
Series A	2008	10,710	10,710	$	0.33	$	3,500
Series A-1	2008	11,630	11,630	$	0.05		600
Series B	2010	13,468	13,468	$	0.59		8,000
Series C	2011	15,375	15,375	$	1.01		15,500
Series D	2012	7,383	7,383	$	2.62		19,370
Series E	2014	4,914	4,914	$	10.18		50,000
Series F	2015	15,440	15,440	$	12.95		200,000
Series G	2016	15,440	15,440	$	12.95		200,000
		94,360	94,360			$	496,970

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest

Schedule of redeemable non controlling interest

The table below presents the reconciliation of changes in redeemable noncontrolling interest:


	2021		2020		2019
Balance as of January 1,	$	848	$	28	$	(245)
Merger of BuzzFeed Japan and HuffPost Japan		510		—		—
Allocation of net (income) loss		936		820		273
Balance as of December 31,	$	2,294	$	848	$	28

Stockholders' Equity (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Stockholders' Equity

Schedule of fair value of stock option awards valuation assumptions


	2021	2020(1)	2019(1)
Exercise price	$8.99 – $9.25	$7.48 – $8.33	$8.30 – $8.33
Expected dividend yield	0%	0%	0%
Expected volatility	45% – 48%	41% – 46%	38% – 39%
Expected term (years)	5.00 – 6.07	5.55 – 6.07	5.80 – 6.09
Risk free interest rate	0.80% – 1.04%	0.26% – 1.17%	1.58% – 2.35%

(1)Exercise prices have been retroactively adjusted to give effect to the exchange ratio of 0.306.

Schedule of stock options activity


		Weighted		Weighted
		Average		Average
	Number of	Exercise		Remaining	Aggregate
	Shares⁽¹⁾	Price⁽¹⁾		Term	Intrinsic Value
Balance as of December 31, 2020	9,822	$	6.41	5.01	$	19,248
Granted	621		9.11
Exercised	(2,393)		2.95
Forfeited	(2,392)		9.71
Expired	(1,098)		8.79
Balance as of December 31, 2021	4,560	$	6.29	3.07	$	2,670
Expected to vest at December 31, 2021	4,560	$	6.29	3.07	$	2,670
Exercisable at December 31, 2021	3,895	$	5.83	2.08	$	2,670

(1)Number of shares and weighted average exercise price have been retroactively adjusted to give effect to the exchange ratio of 0.306.

Schedule of the restricted stock unit activity


		Weighted Average
		Grant-Date Fair
	Shares⁽¹⁾	Value⁽¹⁾
Outstanding as of December 31, 2020	2,530	$	8.53
Granted	3,011		9.11
Vested	(4)		9.25
Forfeited	(302)		8.33
Outstanding as of December 31, 2021	5,235	$	8.88

(1)Shares and weighted average grant-date fair value have been retroactively adjusted to give effect to the exchange ratio of 0.306.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Summary of computation of basic and diluted income (loss) per share

The table below presents the computation of basic and diluted net income (loss) per share:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Numerator:
Net income (loss)	$	25,876	$	11,156	$	(36,919)
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interest		936		820		273
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		228
Allocation of undistributed earnings to convertible preferred stock		24,712		10,336		—
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock for basic net income (loss) per share	$	—	$	—	$	(37,192)
Add: interest on Notes		1,317		—		—
Deduct: change in fair value of derivative liability		(26,745)		—		—
Reallocation of undistributed earnings to convertible preferred stock		24,712		—		—
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock for diluted net income (loss) per share	$	(716)	$	—	$	(37,192)
Denominator:
Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic		27,048		11,942		11,804
Impact of assumed conversion of Notes		953		—		—
Weighted average common shares outstanding, diluted		28,001		11,942		11,804

Net income (loss) per common share, basic	$	0.00	$	0.00	$	(3.15)
Net income (loss) per common share, diluted	$	(0.03)	$	0.00	$	(3.15)

Summary of shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share

The table below presents the details of securities that were excluded from the calculation of diluted net income (loss) per share as the effect would have been anti-dilutive:


	2021	2020	2019
Stock options	4,560	9,831	10,715
Restricted stock units	2,779	—	—
Warrants	9,876	—	—
Convertible preferred stock	—	94,360	94,360

Income Taxes (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Income Taxes

Summary of income (loss) before income taxes

The domestic and foreign components of income (loss) before provision for income taxes were as follows:


	2021		2020		2019
Domestic	$	(301)	$	12,837	$	(29,247)
Foreign		(227)		(740)		(8,030)
Total (loss) income before income taxes	$	(528)	$	12,097	$	(37,277)

Schedule of provision (benefit) for income taxes

The provision (benefit) for income taxes consisted of the following:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Current (benefit) / provision
Federal	$	(16)	$	(16)	$	(7)
State		112		188		20
Foreign		1,666		657		(370)
Total current (benefit) / provision	$	1,762		829	$	(357)
Deferred (benefit) / provision
Federal	$	(23,020)	$	7	$	1
State		(2,682)		4		7
Foreign		(2,464)		101		(9)
Total deferred (benefit) / provision	$	(28,166)		112	$	(1)
Total (benefit) / provision
Federal	$	(23,036)	$	(9)	$	(6)
State		(2,570)		192		27
Foreign		(798)		758		(379)
Total (benefit) / provision	$	(26,404)	$	941	$	(358)

Summary of reconciliation of the U.S. statutory income tax rate to the Company's effective tax rate

A reconciliation of the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate of 21% for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 to the Company’s effective tax rate is as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Income tax (benefit) provision at the U.S. federal statutory rate	$	(111)	$	2,540	$	(7,828)
State income taxes		(519)		323		(543)
Permanent differences		292		(53)		521
Change in valuation allowance		(18,572)		(3,720)		6,258
Effect of foreign operations		(825)		325		373
Stock-based compensation		(838)		198		478
Transaction costs		1,262		—		—
Derivative liability		(6,612)		—		—
Effect of change in tax rates		(835)		(253)		(320)
Sale of foreign subsidiary		—		1,323		—
Research & development tax credits		(501)		(253)		(922)
Foreign currency translation & transactions		254		144		33
Prior period adjustments		—		230		1,210
Other		601		137		382
Total provision (benefit) for income taxes	$	(26,404)	$	941	$	(358)

Summary of tax effects of temporary differences that give rise to the deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities

Significant components of deferred tax assets and liabilities as of were as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020
Deferred tax assets
Net operating loss carryforwards	$	93,592	$	79,475
Accruals		3,503		2,879
Stock-based compensation		6,380		2,841
Bad debt		241		262
Deferred rent		4,167		5,043
Interest expense		735
Other		691		1,185
Total deferred tax asset	$	109,309	$	91,685
Valuation allowance		(66,848)		(83,978)
Net deferred tax asset	$	42,461	$	7,707

Deferred tax liabilities
Deferred state income tax		(1,596)		(2,087)
Depreciation and amortization		(1,905)		(1,720)
Intangible assets		(37,352)		(3,905)
Total deferred tax liability	$	(40,853)	$	(7,712)
Net deferred tax asset (liability)	$	1,608	$	(5)

Schedule of income tax examinations


		Years
United States		2017
United Kingdom		2020
Japan		2016
Canada		2018

Commitments and Contingencies (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Commitments and Contingencies.

Lessee, Operating Lease, Liability, Maturity [Table Text Block]

Future minimum lease payments under leases having initial or remaining non-cancelable lease terms in excess of one year as of December 31, 2021 are as follows:


Year	Amount
2022	$	33,817
2023		31,910
2024		23,885
2025		21,148
2026		8,441
Thereafter		2,642
	$	121,843

Summary of future minimum rental commitments under noncancelable sublease

Sublease receipts to be received in the future under noncancelable sublease as of December 31, 2021 are as follows:


Year	Amount
2022	$	6,769
2023		6,940
2024		7,280
2025		7,360
2026		2,929
Thereafter		215
	$	31,493

Supplemental Cash Flow Information (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

Schedule of supplemental cash flow information


	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Cash paid for income taxes, net	$	1,228	$	83	$	415
Cash paid for interest		901		1,096		270
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Accounts payable and accrued expenses related to property and equipment		306		129		187
Issuance of common stock for HuffPost Acquisition		24,064		—		—
Issuance of common stock for C Acquisition		96,200		—		—
Warrants assumed as part of the business combination		9,678		—		—
Accrued reverse recapitalization costs		585		—		—

Description of the Business (Details) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
Description of the Business (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($) segment	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)
Number of Reportable Segments \| segment		1
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 79,733	$ 79,733	$ 90,626
Net income (loss)	25,900	25,876	11,156	$ (36,919)
Accumulated deficit	$ (322,106)	$ (322,106)	$ (346,818)
CM Partners, LLC
Percentage of membership interests acquired	100.00%	100.00%

- Definition

The consolidated profit or loss for the period, net of income taxes, including the portion attributable to the noncontrolling interest.

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+ Details

- Definition

The cumulative amount of the reporting entity's undistributed earnings or deficit.

+ References + Details

Description of the Business - Proceeds raise and issuance costs (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Cash from reverse recapitalization	$ 16,167
Reverse recapitalization costs	(14,609)
Accrued reverse recapitalization costs	585
Net proceeds from reverse recapitalization	(11,652)
Proceeds from Notes	150,000
Issuance costs	(6,757)
Issuance costs settled in stock	563
Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes, net of issuance costs	$ 143,806

Description of the Business - Business Combination (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Common stock, par value	$ 11.50
Number of public shares exercised the right to redemption	2 days
Redemption price per public share	$ 10.00
Redemption value of public shares	$ 271.3
Number of business days considered in the calculation of redemption price of public shares	2 days
Amounts held in Trust account	$ 16.2
Percentage of voting interests held	97.00%
Unsecured Convertible Notes, Due 2026 [Member]
Aggregate principal amount	$ 150.0
Business Combination Aggrement [Member]
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001
Number of shares issued in exchange fore each share	0.306
Class A common stock
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Number of common shares issued	27,133,519
Number of shares issued in acquisition	10,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	110,789,875	1,540,000
Common stock shares outstanding	110,789,875	1,540,000
Class A common stock \| Business Combination Aggrement [Member]
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001
Number of shares issued in exchange fore each share	0.306
Number of shares issuable per warrant	30,880,000
Number of common shares issued	30,880,000
Class B Common Stock
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Common stock, shares issued	15,872,459	10,439,000
Common stock shares outstanding	15,872,459	10,439,000
Class B Common Stock \| Business Combination Aggrement [Member]
Number of shares issued in exchange fore each share	0.306
Class C common stock
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Common stock, shares issued	6,478,031	0
Common stock shares outstanding	6,478,031	0
Class C common stock \| Business Combination Aggrement [Member]
Number of shares issued in exchange fore each share	0.306
Common Class F [Member] \| Business Combination Aggrement [Member]
Common stock, par value	$ 0.0001

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 79,733	$ 90,626
Restricted cash		15,500
Total	$ 79,733	$ 106,126	$ 74,024	$ 77,445

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies -Allowance for doubtful accounts (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Beginning balance	$ 1,387	$ 1,122	$ 1,055
Additions	703	1,208	449
Write-offs, net of recoveries	(996)	(943)	(382)
Ending balance	$ 1,094	$ 1,387	$ 1,122

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Stock-based compensation cost (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation cost		$ 23,565	$ 1,189	$ 2,813
Cost of revenue
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation cost		2,788	109	353
Sales and marketing
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation cost		4,829	60	658
General and administrative
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation cost	$ 5,400	15,052	977	1,446
Research and development
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation cost		$ 896	$ 43	$ 356

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($) customer	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2021 USD ($)	Dec. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2015
Collateral amount	$ 15,500				$ 15,500
Impairment charges related to film costs		$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
Equity investment without a readily determinable fair value	2,300
Increase in fair value of investment	500
Impairment of long-lived assets		0	0	0
Unrecognized tax benefits	$ 0	0	0
Income tax benefit for stock- based compensation arrangements		$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
Minimum
Useful life of enhancements	1 year
Maximum
Useful life of enhancements	3 years
Furniture and fixtures
Useful lives of property and equipment (in years)	5 years
Computer equipment
Useful lives of property and equipment (in years)	3 years
Video equipment
Useful lives of property and equipment (in years)	3 years
Accounts receivable \| Customers
Number of customers	1	4
Concentration risk (in percent)		13.00%
Accounts receivable \| Customers \| One customer
Concentration risk (in percent)	11.00%
Accounts receivable \| Customers \| Four customers
Concentration risk (in percent)		10.00%
Accounts receivable \| Customers \| Two customers
Concentration risk (in percent)		13.00%
Accounts receivable \| Customers \| Three customers
Concentration risk (in percent)		12.00%
Revenue \| Two customers
Concentration risk (in percent)	12.00%
Revenue \| Customers
Number of customers	2	2	2
Concentration risk (in percent)	13.00%	13.00%	12.00%
Revenue \| Customers \| Two customers
Concentration risk (in percent)		10.00%	10.00%
Revolving line of credit
Maximum borrowing capacity					$ 50,000	$ 50,000
BuzzFeed Japan
Ownership interest (in percent)							24.50%
Ownership interest (in percent)	49.00%						24.50%

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Film costs (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Film, Monetized on Its Own, Capitalized Cost [Abstract]
Film, Monetized on Its Own, Capitalized Cost, Production	$ 3,690	$ 2,086
Film, Monetized on Its Own, Amortization Expense	$ 7,100

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Property and Equipment (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021
Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	5 years
Leasehold improvements \| Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	7 years
Leasehold improvements \| Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	11 years
Computer equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Video equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years

Acquisitions and Dispositions - Additional Information (Details) - USD ($)			12 Months Ended
	Dec. 03, 2021	Feb. 16, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021	Aug. 31, 2015
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Identifiable intangible assets acquired of goodwill	$ 189,400,000		$ 194,881,000
cash investment			35,000,000
Developed technology
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Intangible assets acquired, estimated useful life	3 years
Trademarks and trade names
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Intangible assets acquired, estimated useful life	15 years
BuzzFeed Japan
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Ownership interest (in percent)				24.50%
BuzzFeed Japan \| Disposal Group, Disposed of by Sale, Not Discontinued Operations [Member] \| BuzzFeed do B r a s I l Internet L t d a
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Recognized loss on disposition			$ 700,000
Ownership interest (in percent)			100.00%
H u f f I n g t o n P o s t Italia S.R.L \| H u f f I n g t o n P o s t Italia S.R.L
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Recognized loss on disposition			$ 1,200,000
Ownership interest (in percent)			51.00%
C Acquisition
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Number of shares issued for acquisition		2,639,322
Percentage of membership interests acquired	100.00%
Cash purchase price	$ 294,166
Identifiable intangible assets acquired of goodwill	189,391
Acquisition contributed of revenue	18,500,000
Acquisition contributed of net income	1,200,000
C Acquisition \| C Acquisition Purchase Agreement [Member]
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Cash purchase price	$ 200,000,000.0
C Acquisition \| Class A common stock
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Number of shares issued for acquisition	10,000,000
Stock issued price per share	$ 9.62
HuffPost
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Number of shares issued		3,838,710
Percentage of membership interests acquired		100.00%
Cash purchase price		$ 23,574
Identifiable intangible assets acquired of goodwill		$ 5,500,000
Acquisition contributed of revenue			$ 30,300,000
HuffPost \| Developed technology
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Intangible assets acquired, estimated useful life		3 years
HuffPost \| Trademarks and trade names
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Intangible assets acquired, estimated useful life		15 years
Verizon Verizon Communications Inc.
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Number of shares issued for acquisition		6,478,032
cash investment		$ 35,000,000.0
Legacy BuzzFeed
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Number of shares issued for acquisition		8,625,234
Stock issued price per share		$ 2.79

Acquisitions and Dispositions - Fair value of consideration exchanged (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 03, 2021	Feb. 16, 2021
C Acquisition
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Cash consideration	$ 197,966
Share consideration	96,200
Total	$ 294,166
HuffPost
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Share consideration		$ 24,064
Working capital adjustments		(490)
Total		$ 23,574

Acquisitions and Dispositions - Purchase price allocation for the assets acquired and liabilities assumed (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 03, 2021	Feb. 16, 2021
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill	$ 194,881,000	$ 189,400,000
C Acquisition
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash		2,881
Accounts receivable		22,581
Prepaid and other current assets		17,827
Property and equipment		332
Intangible assets		119,100
Goodwill		189,391
Accounts payable		(2,661)
Accrued expenses		(12,319)
Accrued compensation		(12,867)
Deferred revenue	$ (5,900,000)	(5,855)
Deferred tax liabilities		(22,776)
Other liabilities		(1,468)
Total consideration for Complex Networks		$ 294,166
HuffPost
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents			$ 5,513,000
Accounts receivable			3,383,000
Prepaid and other current assets			611,000
Deferred tax assets			131,000
Property and equipment			620,000
Intangible assets			19,500,000
Goodwill			5,500,000
Goodwill			5,490,000
Accounts payable			(1,410,000)
Accrued expenses			(4,249,000)
Deferred tax liabilities			(3,829,000)
Other liabilities			(63,000)
Noncontrolling interests			(2,123,000)
Total consideration for Complex Networks			23,574,000
HuffPost \| Preliminary
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents			5,513,000
Accounts receivable			3,383,000
Prepaid and other current assets			611,000
Deferred tax assets			116,000
Property and equipment			620,000
Intangible assets			19,500,000
Goodwill			5,927,000
Accounts payable			(1,410,000)
Accrued expenses			(4,249,000)
Deferred tax liabilities			(4,251,000)
Other liabilities			(63,000)
Noncontrolling interests			(2,123,000)
Total consideration for Complex Networks			23,574,000
HuffPost \| Measurement Period Adjustments
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Deferred tax assets			15,000
Goodwill			(437,000)
Deferred tax liabilities			$ 422,000

Acquisitions and Dispositions - Estimated fair value of each of the identifiable intangible assets (Details)	Dec. 03, 2021 USD ($)
Trademarks and trade names
Estimated fair value of each of the identifiable intangible assets
Asset Fair Value	$ 97,000
Weighted Average Useful Life (Years)	15 years
Customer relationships
Estimated fair value of each of the identifiable intangible assets
Asset Fair Value	$ 17,000
Weighted Average Useful Life (Years)	4 years
Developed technology
Estimated fair value of each of the identifiable intangible assets
Asset Fair Value	$ 5,100
Weighted Average Useful Life (Years)	3 years

Acquisitions and Dispositions - Company pro forma combined revenues and net income (Details) (Imported) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Revenue	$ 521,224	$ 446,368
Net loss	$ (19,747)	$ (12,972)

Revenue Recognition - Disaggregated Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 397,564	$ 321,324	$ 317,923
United States
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	352,280	292,107	287,723
International
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	45,284	29,217	30,200
Advertising
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	205,794	149,704	128,438
Content
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	130,200	119,846	150,876
Commerce and other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 61,570	$ 51,774	$ 38,609

- Definition

Amount, excluding tax collected from customer, of revenue from satisfaction of performance obligation by transferring promised good or service to customer. Tax collected from customer is tax assessed by governmental authority that is both imposed on and concurrent with specific revenue-producing transaction, including, but not limited to, sales, use, value added and excise.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 30
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8906-108599

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 40
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e9031-108599

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 41
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e9038-108599

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 4
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130543-203045

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 22
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8736-108599

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 22
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e8736-108599

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 42
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123359005&loc=d3e9054-108599

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 5
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123351226&loc=SL49130545-203045

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 924
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SAB Topic 11.L)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6472922&loc=d3e499488-122856

+ Details

Revenue Recognition (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 03, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Contract assets	$ 13,300,000		$ 2,800,000	$ 6,200,000	$ 0
Deferred revenue	1,676,000		$ 2,432,000	$ 1,500,000	$ 4,000,000.0
Transaction price allocated to the remaining performance obligations	4,200,000
C Acquisition
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Acquisition of contract assets	16,500,000
Deferred revenue	$ 5,900,000	$ 5,855
Maximum
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Expected recognized period (in years)	3 years

Fair Value Measurements - Money Market Funds (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	$ 1	$ 24,460
Other non-current liabilities:
Total	9,813
Transfers between fair value measurement levels	0
Level 1
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	1	24,460
Other non-current liabilities:
Total	4,792
Level 2
Other non-current liabilities:
Total	146
Level 3
Other non-current liabilities:
Total	4,875
Money Market Funds [Member]
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	1	24,460
Money Market Funds [Member] \| Level 1
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	1	$ 24,460
Public Warrants
Other non-current liabilities:
Other non-current liabilities	$ 4,792
Warrants, exercise price	$ 0.98	$ 0.50
Public Warrants \| Level 1
Other non-current liabilities:
Other non-current liabilities	$ 4,792
Private Warrants
Other non-current liabilities:
Other non-current liabilities	146
Private Warrants \| Level 2
Other non-current liabilities:
Other non-current liabilities	146
Fair Value, Recurring [Member]
Liabilities:
Derivative liability	4,875
Fair Value, Recurring [Member] \| Level 3
Liabilities:
Derivative liability	$ 4,875

Fair Value Measurements - Quantitative information regarding the significant unobservable inputs used by the Company related to the derivative liability (Details)	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 03, 2021
Term (in years)
Fair Value Measurement Inputs and Valuation Techniques [Line Items]
Derivative liability, measurement input	4.9	5.0
Risk-free rate
Fair Value Measurement Inputs and Valuation Techniques [Line Items]
Derivative liability, measurement input	1.25	1.13
Volatility
Fair Value Measurement Inputs and Valuation Techniques [Line Items]
Derivative liability, measurement input	31.5	28.0

Fair Value Measurements - Activity of the Level 3 instruments (Details) - Level 3 $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Fair Value, Liabilities Measured on Recurring Basis, Unobservable Input Reconciliation [Line Items]
Issuance of Notes	$ 31,620
Change in fair value of derivative liability	(26,745)
Ending balance	$ 4,875

Property and Equipment, net (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, by Type [Abstract]
Property and equipment, gross	$ 59,384	$ 63,369
Less: Accumulated depreciation	(36,332)	(37,824)
Property and equipment, net	23,052	25,545
Depreciation	8,300	8,100	$ 8,700
Leasehold improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, by Type [Abstract]
Property and equipment, gross	47,573	49,074
Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, by Type [Abstract]
Property and equipment, gross	6,029	8,027
Computer equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, by Type [Abstract]
Property and equipment, gross	5,134	5,625
Video equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, by Type [Abstract]
Property and equipment, gross	$ 648	$ 643

Capitalized Software Costs, net (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Capitalized Software Costs, net
Website and internal-use software	$ 81,908	$ 72,574
Less: Accumulated amortization	(65,354)	(56,014)
Capitalized Computer Software, Net	16,554	16,560
Amount of capitalized software	11,000	9,800	$ 8,200
Amortization expense	$ 11,100	$ 9,400	$ 10,800

Goodwill and Intangibles, net (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
Goodwill and Intangibles, net (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Balance at the end	$ 194,881
HuffPost
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, Acquired During Period	5,490
CM Partners, LLC
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, Acquired During Period	$ 189,391

Goodwill and Intangibles, net - Intangible assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Finite Lived And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets By Major Class [Line Items]
Gross Carrying Value	$ 139,968	$ 1,368
Accumulated Amortization	3,455
Net Carrying Value	135,145	1,368
Amortization expense associated with intangible assets	3,500	0
Trademarks and trade names
Finite Lived And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets By Major Class [Line Items]
Indefinite-lived intangible assets	$ 1,368	$ 1,368
Acquired Technology
Finite Lived And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets By Major Class [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Remaining Useful Lives (in years)	3 years
Gross Carrying Value	$ 10,600
Accumulated Amortization	1,745
Net Carrying Value	$ 8,855
Trademarks and trade names
Finite Lived And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets By Major Class [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Remaining Useful Lives (in years)	15 years
Gross Carrying Value	$ 111,000
Accumulated Amortization	1,356
Net Carrying Value	$ 109,644
Customer relationships
Finite Lived And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets By Major Class [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Remaining Useful Lives (in years)	4 years
Gross Carrying Value	$ 17,000
Accumulated Amortization	354
Net Carrying Value	$ 16,646

Goodwill and Intangible Assets, net - Estimated Future Amortization (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Net, Amortization Expense, Fiscal Year Maturity [Abstract]
2022	$ 15,183
2023	15,183
2024	13,438
2025	11,296
2026	7,400
Thereafter	72,645
Total	$ 135,145	$ 1,368

Debt (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands			3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
Debt (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 30, 2020	May 20, 2020	Mar. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Loss on extinguishment of debt					$ (600)
Issuance of letter of credit				$ 9,000	19,896
Outstanding borrowings				141,878	20,396
Revolving line of credit
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity	$ 50,000		$ 50,000
Letter of credit outstanding	$ 15,500			$ 15,500	20,400
Debt instrument term	3 years
Percentage of qualifying investment grade accounts receivable	95.00%
Percentage of qualifying Non-investment grade accounts receivable	90.00%
Unrestricted cash	$ 25,000
Debt instrument margin rate				4.50%
Outstanding borrowings				$ 28,500
Unused borrowing capacity				5,400	29,600
Debt issuance cost				$ 300	$ 500
Revolving line of credit \| Minimum
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument margin rate				3.75%
Revolving line of credit \| Maximum
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument margin rate				4.25%
Revolving line of credit \| LIBOR
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt Instrument Floor Rate 1				0.75%
Percentage of unused commitment fee				0.375%
Revolving line of credit \| LIBOR \| Minimum
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Minimum monthly average utilization of debt				$ 15,000
Secured Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		$ 20,000
Debt instrument term		2 years
Percentage of limitation of qualifying accounts receivable		80.00%
Secured Facility \| Minimum
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Minimum monthly average utilization of debt		$ 10,000
Secured Facility \| LIBOR
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Spread on variable rate		7.25%
Debt Instrument Floor Rate 1		1.50%
Letter of credit
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issuance of letter of credit			$ 15,500

Debt - Convertible Notes (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Jun. 30, 2021
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issuance costs attributable to debt component	$ 6,757
Convertible Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Aggregate principal amount of notes issued		$ 150,000
Interest rate		8.50%
Initial conversion price		$ 12.50
Volume-weighted average trading price as percentage of conversion price	130.00%
Number of trading days	20
Number of consecutive trading days	30
Repurchase price as percentage of par plus accrued and unpaid interest	101.00%
Derivative liability	$ 31,600
Derivative liability	6,700
Debt issuance cost	6,700
Issuance costs attributable to debt component	5,300
Issuance costs attributable to derivative liability	$ 1,400
Effective interest rate	15.00%
Interest expense	$ 1,300
Amortization of debt discount and issuance costs	$ 300
Convertible Notes \| After the one year anniversary, and prior to the three-year anniversary
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Term for calculating amount of interest declining ratably	1 year
Term for calculating amount of interest on the aggregate principal amount	3 years
Convertible Notes \| From the one year anniversary of the issuance of the Notes to the two year anniversary
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Term for calculating amount of interest declining ratably	18 months
Term for calculating amount of interest on the aggregate principal amount	12 months
Convertible Notes \| From the two year anniversary of the issuance of the Notes to the three year anniversary
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Term for calculating amount of interest declining ratably	12 months
Term for calculating amount of interest on the aggregate principal amount	0 days

Debt - Net carrying amount (Details) - Convertible Notes	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal outstanding	$ 150,000
Unamortized debt discount and issuance costs	(36,627)
Balance as of December 31, 2021	113,373
Fair value of the Notes	$ 126,000,000.0

- Definition

Amount, after unamortized (discount) premium and debt issuance costs, of long-term debt. Includes, but not limited to, notes payable, bonds payable, debentures, mortgage loans and commercial paper. Excludes capital lease obligations.

+ References + Details

Warrants (Details)	12 Months Ended
Warrants (Details)	Dec. 31, 2021 $ / shares shares
Public Warrants
Warrants
Number of warrants assumed	9,583,287
Warrants exercisable term	30 days
Warrants, exercise price \| $ / shares	$ 11.50
Warrants, expiration term	5 years
Private Warrants
Warrants
Number of warrants assumed	292,500
Threshold term for not transferring, assigning or selling after completion of Business Combination	30 days

Convertible Preferred Stock (Details) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2021 shares	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) $ / shares shares
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized		50,000,000
Shares Outstanding		0
Shares Issued		0
Preferred stock dividend rate		8.00%
Stock spilt ratio	10
Series A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			10,710,000
Shares Outstanding			10,710,000
Shares Issued		10,710,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 0.33
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 3,500
Series A-1
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			11,630,000
Shares Outstanding			11,630,000
Shares Issued		11,630,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 0.05
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 600
Series B
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			13,468,000
Shares Outstanding			13,468,000
Shares Issued		13,468,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 0.59
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 8,000
Series C
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			15,375,000
Shares Outstanding			15,375,000
Shares Issued		15,375,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 1.01
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 15,500
Series D
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			7,383,000
Shares Outstanding			7,383,000
Shares Issued		7,383,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 2.62
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 19,370
Series E
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			4,914,000
Shares Outstanding			4,914,000
Shares Issued		4,914,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 10.18
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 50,000
Series F
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			15,440,000
Shares Outstanding			15,440,000
Shares Issued		15,440,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 12.95
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 200,000
Convertible ratio		1
Series G
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			15,440,000
Shares Outstanding			15,440,000
Shares Issued		15,440,000
Issue Price \| $ / shares			$ 12.95
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 200,000
Convertible ratio		1
Series F and G Preferred Stock
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Number of shares issued upon conversion		30,880,000
Series Preferred Stock Combination [Member]
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Number of shares issued upon conversion		63,479,988
Convertible ratio		0.306
Convertible preferred stock
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares Authorized			94,360
Shares Outstanding			94,360
Shares Issued		94,360
Liquidation Value \| $			$ 496,970

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	May 01, 2021	Aug. 31, 2015
Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest
Beginning balance	$ 848	$ 28	$ (245)
Merger of BuzzFeed Japan and HuffPost Japan	510
Allocation of net (income) loss	936	820	273
Ending balance	$ 2,294	$ 848	$ 28
BuzzFeed Japan
Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest [Line Items]
Ownership (In percentage)	49.00%				24.50%
Yohoo Japan's
Redeemable Noncontrolling Interest [Line Items]
Ownership (In percentage)				24.50%

Restructuring Costs (Details) - USD ($)		12 Months Ended
Restructuring Costs (Details) - USD ($)	Mar. 09, 2021	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2021
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring cost	$ 3,600,000	$ 9,600,000
Restructuring Cost Liabilities			$ 0
Cost of revenue
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring cost	3,200,000	4,400,000
General and administrative
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring cost		2,200,000
Sales and marketing
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring cost	300,000	1,600,000
Research and development
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring cost	$ 100,000	$ 1,400,000

Stockholders' Equity - Option pricing model (Details) - Stock option - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expected dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%		0.00%
Minimum
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price	$ 8.99	$ 7.48	$ 8.30
Expected volatility	45.00%	41.00%	38.00%
Expected term (years)	5 years	5 years 6 months 18 days	5 years 9 months 18 days
Risk free interest rate	0.80%	0.26%	1.58%
Maximum
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price	$ 9.25	$ 8.33	$ 8.33
Expected volatility	48.00%	46.00%	39.00%
Expected term (years)	6 years 25 days	6 years 25 days	6 years 1 month 2 days
Risk free interest rate	1.04%	1.17%	2.35%

Stockholders' Equity - Summary of the share activity under the 2015 Plan (Details) - 2015 Equity Incentive Plan - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Number of shares
Outstanding at the beginning	9,822
Granted	621
Exercised	(2,393)
Forfeited	(2,392)
Expired	(1,098)
Outstanding at the end	4,560	9,822
Expected to vest	4,560
Exercisable	3,895
Weighted Average Exercise Price
Outstanding at the beginning (in dollars per share)	$ 6.41
Granted (in dollars per share)	9.11
Exercised (in dollars per share)	2.95
Forfeited (in dollars per share)	9.71
Expired (in dollars per share)	8.79
Outstanding at the end (in dollars per share)	6.29	$ 6.41
Expected to vest (in dollars per share)	6.29
Exercisable (in dollars per share)	$ 5.83
Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term
Weighted Average Remaining Term (in years)	3 years 25 days	5 years 3 days
Vested and expected to vest (in years)	3 years 25 days
Exercisable (in years)	2 years 29 days
Aggregate Intrinsic Value
Outstanding	$ 2,670	$ 19,248
Expected to vest	2,670
Exercisable	$ 2,670

Stockholders' Equity - Summary of the restricted stock unit activity (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Stock-based compensation cost	$ 23,565	$ 1,189	$ 2,813
Cost of revenue
Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Stock-based compensation cost	$ 2,788	$ 109	$ 353
Restricted stock
Number of shares
Outstanding at the beginning	2,530
Granted	3,011
Vested	4
Forfeited	302
Outstanding at the end	5,235	2,530
Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Outstanding at the beginning	$ 8.53
Granted	9.11
Vested	9.25
Forfeited	8.33
Outstanding at the end	$ 8.88	$ 8.53
Number of RSUs outstanding subject to a certain vesting condition	5,235	2,530
RSUs
Number of shares
Outstanding at the end	2,500,000
Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Unrecognized compensation costs	$ 29,100
Number of RSUs outstanding subject to a certain vesting condition	2,500,000
Unrecognized Compensation Costs	$ 21,200

Stockholders' Equity - (Details) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($) Vote $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($) Vote $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($) $ / shares	Dec. 03, 2021 shares	Oct. 16, 2018 shares	Oct. 30, 2015 shares
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share \| $ / shares	$ 11.50	$ 11.50
Preferred Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share \| $ / shares	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Preferred Stock, Shares Authorized \| shares	50,000,000	50,000,000
Preferred Stock, Shares Issued \| shares	0	0
Preferred Stock, Shares Outstanding \| shares	0	0
Options granted term		10 years
Share-based compensation costs		$ 23,565	$ 1,189	$ 2,813
Stock-based compensation cost		23,565	1,189	2,813
Cost of revenue
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		2,788	109	353
Stock-based compensation cost		2,788	109	353
Sales and marketing
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		4,829	60	658
Stock-based compensation cost		4,829	60	658
General and administrative
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs	$ 5,400	$ 15,052	977	1,446
Escrow Shares \| shares		1,200,000
Share price \| $ / shares	$ 12.50	$ 12.50
Stock-based compensation cost	$ 5,400	$ 15,052	977	1,446
Research and development
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		896	43	356
Stock-based compensation cost		$ 896	$ 43	$ 356
2015 Equity Incentive Plan
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Number of shares available for future issuance \| shares	31,206,550	31,206,550
Award vesting period		4 years
Exchange ratio		0.306%
Increase in number of shares reserved for issuance as percentage of total number of outstanding shares		5.00%
Class A common stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Common stock shares issued \| shares	110,789,875	110,789,875	1,540,000
Common shares, votes per share \| Vote	1	1
Common stock shares outstanding \| shares	110,789,875	110,789,875	1,540,000
Number of shares authorized \| shares	700,000,000	700,000,000	700,000,000
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share \| $ / shares	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Class B Common Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Common stock shares issued \| shares	15,872,459	15,872,459	10,439,000
Common shares, votes per share \| Vote	50	50
Common stock shares outstanding \| shares	15,872,459	15,872,459	10,439,000
Number of shares authorized \| shares	20,000,000	20,000,000	20,000,000
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share \| $ / shares	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Class C common stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Common stock shares issued \| shares	6,478,031	6,478,031	0
Common shares, votes per share \| Vote	0	0
Common stock shares outstanding \| shares	6,478,031	6,478,031	0
Number of shares authorized \| shares	10,000,000	10,000,000	10,000,000
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share \| $ / shares	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Stock option
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		$ 2,200
Weighted-average remaining requisite service period		1 year 3 months 18 days
Weighted average fair value of stock options granted \| $ / shares		$ 1.23	$ 1.03		$ 1.01
Intrinsic value of stock options exercised		$ 13,800	$ 400		$ 1,600
Stock-based compensation cost		$ 2,200
Stock option \| 2015 Equity Incentive Plan
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Number of shares available for grant \| shares								16,895,765
Number of shares available for future issuance \| shares							15,700,000
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Number of Shares Authorized \| shares						32,595,765
RSUs \| 2015 Equity Incentive Plan
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs			16,000
Stock-based compensation cost			$ 16,000
Number of RSU outstanding \| shares	2,700,000	2,700,000
RSUs \| 2015 Equity Incentive Plan \| Cost of revenue
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		$ 2,200
Stock-based compensation cost		2,200
RSUs \| 2015 Equity Incentive Plan \| Sales and marketing
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		4,400
Stock-based compensation cost		4,400
RSUs \| 2015 Equity Incentive Plan \| General and administrative
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		8,700
Stock-based compensation cost		8,700
RSUs \| 2015 Equity Incentive Plan \| Research and development
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation costs		800
Stock-based compensation cost		$ 800

Earnings (Loss) Per Share - Computation of basic and diluted loss per share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Numerator:
Net income (loss)	$ 25,900	$ 25,876	$ 11,156	$ (36,919)
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interest		936	820	273
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		228
Allocation of undistributed earnings to convertible preferred stock		24,712	$ 10,336
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock				(37,192)
Add: interest on Notes		1,317
Change in fair value of derivative liability		(26,745)
Reallocation of undistributed earnings to convertible preferred stock		24,712
Net income (loss) attributable to holders of Class A, Class B, and Class C common stock for diluted net income (loss) per share		$ (716)		$ (37,192)
Denominator:
Weighted-average shares - basic		27,048	11,942	11,804
Impact of assumed conversion of Notes		953
Weighted-average shares - diluted		28,001	11,942	11,804
Net loss per common share - basic		$ 0.00	$ 0.00	$ (3.15)
Net loss per common share - diluted		$ (0.03)	$ 0.00	$ (3.15)

Earnings (Loss) Per Share - Calculation of diluted loss per share (Details) - shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Stock option
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share, as their effect would be anti-dilutive	4,560	9,831	10,715
RSUs
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share, as their effect would be anti-dilutive	2,779
Warrant
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share, as their effect would be anti-dilutive	9,876
Convertible preferred stock
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share, as their effect would be anti-dilutive		94,360	94,360

Earnings (Loss) Per Share - Additional information (Details) - shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Preferred stock dividend rate	8.00%
Convertible preferred stock
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share, as their effect would be anti-dilutive		94,360	94,360
Restricted stock
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Shares excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share, as their effect would be anti-dilutive	2,400,000	2,500,000		2,600,000

Disposition (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
Disposition (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Disposition
Net income (loss)	$ 25,900	$ 25,876	$ 11,156	$ (36,919)

- Definition

The consolidated profit or loss for the period, net of income taxes, including the portion attributable to the noncontrolling interest.

+ References

+ Details

Income Taxes - Domestic and foreign components of income (loss) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Income (loss) before income taxes
Domestic	$ (301)	$ 12,837	$ (29,247)
Foreign	(227)	(740)	(8,030)
Total income (loss) before income taxes	$ (528)	$ 12,097	$ (37,277)

- Definition

Amount of income (loss) from continuing operations, including income (loss) from equity method investments, before deduction of income tax expense (benefit), and income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest.

+ References

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Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
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+ Details

Income Taxes - Provision (benefit) for income taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Current (benefit) / provision
Federal	$ (16)	$ (16)	$ (7)
State	112	188	20
Foreign	1,666	657	(370)
Total current (benefit) / provision	1,762	829	(357)
Deferred (benefit) / provision
Federal	(23,020)	7	1
State	(2,682)	4	7
Foreign	(2,464)	101	(9)
Total deferred (benefit) / provision	(28,087)	112	(1)
Total (benefit) / provision
Federal	(23,036)	(9)	(6)
State	(2,570)	192	27
Foreign	(798)	758	(379)
Total provision (benefit) for income taxes	$ (26,404)	$ 941	$ (358)

Income Taxes - Reconciliation of the U.S. federal statutory income tax (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Taxes
Income tax provision (benefit) at the U.S. federal statutory rate	$ (111)	$ 2,540	$ (7,828)
State income taxes	(519)	323	(543)
Permanent differences	292	(53)	521
Change in valuation allowance	(18,572)	(3,720)	6,258
Effect of foreign operations	(825)	325	373
Stock-based compensation	(838)	198	478
Transaction costs	1,262
Derivative liability	(6,612)
Effect of change in tax rates	(835)	(253)	(320)
Sale of foreign subsidiary		1,323
Research & development tax credits	(501)	(253)	(922)
Foreign currency translation & transactions	254	144	33
Prior period adjustments		230	1,210
Other	601	137	382
Total provision (benefit) for income taxes	$ (26,404)	$ 941	$ (358)

Income Taxes - Deferred tax assets and liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Deferred tax assets
Net operating loss carryforwards	$ 93,592	$ 79,475
Accruals	3,503	2,879
Stock-based compensation	6,380	2,841
Bad debt	241	262
Deferred rent	4,167	5,043
Interest expense	735
Other	691	1,185
Total deferred tax asset	109,309	91,685
Valuation allowance	(66,848)	(83,978)
Net deferred tax asset	42,461	7,707
Deferred tax liabilities
Deferred state income tax	(1,596)	(2,087)
Depreciation and amortization	(1,905)	(1,720)
Intangible assets	(37,352)	(3,905)
Total deferred tax liability	(40,853)	(7,712)
Net deferred tax asset (liability)	$ 1,608	$ 5

Income Taxes - Additional information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
U.S. federal statutory income tax rate	21.00%	21.00%	21.00%
Effective income tax rate	5000.80%	7.80%	1.00%
Increase decrease in valuation allowance	$ 17,100
Federal research and development tax credits	8,100
Unrecognized tax benefits	0	$ 0	$ 0
Federal
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
Net operating losses	314,500
Net operating losses subject to expiration	201,500
operating losses indefinite lived carryforward	113,000
State
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
Net operating losses	11,300
Net operating losses subject to expiration	11,300
operating losses indefinite lived carryforward	3,200
Foreign
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
Net operating losses subject to expiration	$ 29,200

Commitments and Contingencies - Future minimum lease payments (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Future minimum rental commitments under non-cancelable leases with initial or remaining terms in excess of one year
2022	$ 33,817
2023	31,910
2024	23,885
2025	21,148
2026	8,441
Thereafter	2,642
Total	$ 121,843

Commitments and Contingencies - Future under noncancelable sublease (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Future minimum rental commitments under non-cancelable Subleases receipts
2022	$ 6,769
2023	6,940
2024	7,280
2025	7,360
2026	2,929
Thereafter	215
Total	$ 31,493

Commitments and Contingencies - Additional information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Oct. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Commitments and Contingencies.
Rent expense		$ 18.5	$ 25.7	$ 24.8
Sublease income		6.8	$ 6.1	$ 2.7
Maximum amount of new guarantee under lease agreement	$ 5.4	$ 2.7

Segment Information - Additional Information (Details)	12 Months Ended
Segment Information - Additional Information (Details)	Dec. 31, 2021 segment
Segment Information
Number of operating segments	1

Related party Transactions (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2021	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Revenue from related parties			$ 397,564	$ 321,324	$ 317,923
Related party transaction expenses			0	200	2,000
Related party transaction consultancy charges					400
Earned revenue under an agreement with the investee			500	1,400
Commercial Agreement
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Term of Commercial Agreement	3 years
NBCUniversal Media, LLC [Member]
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Revenue from related parties			2,900	3,600	$ 9,900
Related party transaction expenses			1,100	800
Outstanding receivable				0
Outstanding payable			300	0
NBCUniversal Media, LLC [Member] \| Commercial Agreement
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Minimum editorial promotion expense agreed to provide in each year	$ 1,000
Impression per year	200,000
Value of NBCU Base Shares	400,000
NBCUniversal Media, LLC [Member] \| Commercial Agreement \| HuffPost
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Minimum editorial promotion expense agreed to provide in each year	$ 1,000
Investee
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Outstanding receivable			$ 0	$ 900
Related party transaction investment in equity		$ 1,800

Supplemental Cash Flow Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Noncash or Part Noncash Acquisitions [Line Items]
Cash paid for income taxes, net	$ 1,228	$ 83	$ 415
Cash paid for interest	901	1,096	270
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Accounts payable and accrued expenses related to property and equipment	306	$ 129	$ 187
Warrants assumed as part of the business combination	9,678
Accrued reverse recapitalization costs	585
HuffPost and Verizon Investment
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Issuance of common stock for acquisition	24,064
C Acquisition
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Issuance of common stock for acquisition	$ 96,200

Subsequent Events (Details) $ in Millions	Mar. 22, 2022 USD ($)
Subsequent Events
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Restructuring charges	$ 1.7