Perion Network 
PERI reported modest first-quarter revenue growth while management highlighted rising adoption of its Perion One platform and Outmax AI agent as the company continues to shift away from legacy web and search economics toward channel-agnostic advertising infrastructure.
On the company’s first-quarter 2026 earnings call, Chief Executive Officer Tal Jacobson said 2025 marked “year 1 for the new Perion Network,” while 2026 is focused on advancing new technologies and accelerating client adoption. He said the company saw increases across its growth engines during the quarter, with connected TV and digital out-of-home outgrowing the market, retail media gaining adoption and Outmax becoming “a meaningful part of Perion One.”
Chief Financial Officer Elad Tzubery said first-quarter results were “largely as we expected,” reflecting the seasonally low quarter for the industry. Revenue rose 1% year over year to $90.4 million. Contribution ex-TAC was flat at $39.7 million, with a 44% margin, consistent with the prior-year period. Adjusted EBITDA declined to $0.5 million from $1.8 million a year earlier, which Tzubery attributed mainly to higher go-to-market investments tied to the company’s three-year growth plan.
Perion One spend rises as company shifts reporting focus
Management emphasized that spend, rather than channel revenue, will become a central metric for evaluating the company’s strategic progress. Tzubery said Perion will no longer provide channel revenue breakdowns as a primary KPI, citing the company’s transition toward “a truly channel-agnostic platform” centered on Outmax.
“Spend represents the total media budget running through our platform,” Tzubery said. “It is the truest leading indicator of our platform’s adoption, customers’ trust, and long-term scale.”
Total Perion One spend increased 6% year over year in the quarter. Tzubery said Perion One contribution ex-TAC increased 7% year over year and represented 81%…