Data shows how Amazon and Hulu are on an ad spending spree to win the streaming wars

Hi! Welcome to the Advertising Insider daily for July 24. I'm Lauren Johnson, a senior advertising reporter at Business Insider, and back to this newsletter after a few days of vacation in the Colorado mountains. Subscribe here to get this newsletter in your inbox every weekday. Send me feedback or tips at ljohnson@businessinsider.com

Today we look at the advertising spend from the streaming wars, VCs' picks for gaming startups to watch, and TikTok's $200 million pledge for creators.

Amazon Prime Video and Hulu have outpaced their rivals in buying TV ads in 2020, as they compete with new streaming services for subscribers

• A new report from TV analytics firm iSpot.TV found that Amazon Prime Video and Hulu are on a marketing spree to promote their services, Ashley Rodriguez reports.
• According to the report, streaming video services spent $1 billion on national TV ads during the first half of 2020, up 205% compared to the same time period last year.
• Amazon and Hulu spent more than streaming newcomers NBCUniversal and Quibi. Amazon spent $169.8 million while Hulu spent $144.6 million on national TV ads in the first six months of the year, per iSpot.TV's figures.

Read the full story here.

VCs pick 4 gaming startups to watch in 2020 as interest in the sector surges amid the pandemic

• Ashley also looked at the gaming companies that top VCs think will take off this year.
• Investors including Transcend Fund and MaC Venture Capital are betting big on gaming and esports startups like Roblox and PlayVS.
• As more people spend time at home due to the coronavirus, investors are betting on these companies' growing audiences. "The most exciting things that are happening in games these days have to do with the expansion of the audience," said Shanti Bergel, managing director at Transcend Fund.

Read the full story here.

TikTok establishes $200 million US-based fund to support content creators

• TikTok wants to help creators grow on its platform and has created a program to give $200 million to US creators.
• Eligable creators must be at least 18 years old and have a certain number of followers, which has not been specified yet. It is also not clear how TikTok is funding the program.
• In theory, the program could allow creators to make money directly from TikTok, similar to how creators make money from YouTube. To date, popular creators like Charli and Dixie D'Amelio have made money from sponsored posts and brand partnerships.

Read the full story here.

More stories we're reading:

• 12 top public relations recruiters to know right now (Business Insider)
• Austin is seeing a startup boom. Meet Austin's top VCs giving Silicon Valley investors a run for the money. (Business Insider)
• Jack Dorsey said Twitter is in the 'very, very early phases' of exploring a subscription model and other additional streams of revenue (Business Insider)
• Hearst Magazines president Troy Young has left the company after reports of harassment and 'toxic' culture (Business Insider)
• 22 fintechs that VCs and big investors say are on the brink of becoming household names (Business Insider)
• AT&T Profit Sags Under Pressure From Satellite TV, Covid-19 (Wall Street Journal)
• Google Is Coming After Amazon's Marketplace Merchants (Bloomberg)
• White Ops Uncovers Advanced Mobile App Ad Fraud Scheme (Ad Exchanger)

Thanks for reading and see you tomorrow! You can reach me in the meantime at ljohnson@businessinsider.com and subscribe to this daily email here.

— Lauren