monetize

verb

mon·e·tize | \ ˈmä-nə-ˌtīz

also ˈmə-\

monetized; monetizing

Definition of monetize

1 : to coin into money also : to establish as legal tender

2 : to purchase (public or private debt) and thereby free for other uses moneys that would have been devoted to debt service

3 : to utilize (something of value) as a source of profit

Other Words from monetize Example Sentences Learn More about monetize

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Other Words from monetize

monetizable \ ˈmä-nə-ˌtī-zə-bəl

also ˈmə- \ adjective

monetization \ ˌmä-nə-tə-ˈzā-shən

also ˌmə- \ noun

Examples of monetize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

During the hearing, LaCour reiterated points prosecutors have made since the outset of the case, saying that Hubbard raked in more than $1 million by monetizing the speaker’s office. — Mike Cason | Mcason@al.com, al.com, "Justices question AG’s office about Mike Hubbard conviction," 4 June 2019 California just enacted its Consumer Privacy Protection Act to give California residents control over how their personal data is managed and monetized. — Paul Roehrig, Quartz, "The internet is broken. But we can’t just repair it—we need to rebuild it," 3 June 2019 The deal announced Friday allows Kingsland to monetize its Avianca stake through a put agreement with United but remain involved in the company. — Cara Lombardo, WSJ, "United Reaches Deal on Avianca Loan, Partnership," 30 Nov. 2018 Television and telecommunications companies increasingly are looking to advertising technology to modernize their ad offerings to marketers, and to put their viewing and subscriber data to work to help monetize their content. — Lara O’reilly, WSJ, "Ad-Tech Firm DataXu Hires Bank to Explore Possible Sale," 17 Oct. 2018 These companies are helping monetize sites like that. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "How a Twitter account convinced 4,000 companies to stop advertising on Breitbart," 3 Sep. 2018 The app quickly amassed millions of users but never gained enough traction to compete with social-media giants such as Facebook Inc. Mr. Livingston devised kin as a way to monetize the Kik platform. — Dave Michaels, WSJ, "Are ICO Tokens Securities? Startup Wants a Judge to Decide," 27 Jan. 2019 Allison Laffey has yet to really monetize the account for her dog, Gouda. — Sarah Hauer, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Influencer marketing goes to the dogs," 10 May 2018 Walmart and other big retailers are now following Amazon into the advertising arena to monetize that information. — Matthew Boyle, The Seattle Times, "Amazon has a big advertising business. Walmart wants one too," 19 Feb. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'monetize.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near monetize

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Last Updated

14 Jun 2019

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Time Traveler for monetize

The first known use of monetize was circa 1879

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More Definitions for monetize

monetize

verb

Financial Definition of monetize

What It Is

To "monetize" something is to convert non-revenue generating assets into sources of revenue. In economic terms, monetize means to convert any event, object or transaction into a form of currency or something with transferable value.

How It Works

For example, over time, a company may develop any number of systems or assets that are part of the company's overhead and infrastructure, supporting the company in selling its products or services. Examples of these may include a safe storage system or an innovative and efficient distribution system or an information system to track sales, monitor projects, track personnel time, account for funds or even report on company activities. These systems are typically non-revenue generating, in that they are not sold to generate revenues independently of the company's core product or service.

But sometimes a company may be able to find an independent market for these systems. When the company begins to package and sell these traditionally non-revenue generating systems, the company "monetizes" them, creating new sources of revenue for the company.

In another example, a flow of traffic to a destination, such as tourists to a historic site, can be monetized by capturing retail sales from those tourists en route to the historic site. At the same time, Internet surfing "traffic" to popular websites has been "monetized" by selling advertising space and getting site visitors to view the advertisement.

Why It Matters

The process of figuring out creative ways of monetization is about as old as capitalism (which is only about 300-400 years old in its current form). The processes of monetization -- that is, thinking systematically about how to convert something into cash -- is a valuable part of a business's strategic planning process.

Similarly, the capital markets are constantly innovating and finding new ways to monetize market transactions, using letters of credit, standby guarantees, derivatives and swaps to allow for the creation of new tradable financial products.

Source: Investing Answers

monetize

transitive verb

mon·e·tize | \ ˈmä-nə-ˌtīz

monetized; monetizing