On today’s podcast episode, we discuss the unofficial list of the most interesting retailers for the month of July. Each month, our analysts Arielle Feger, Becky Schilling, and Vice President of Content and guest host, Suzy Davidkhanian (aka The Committee) put together a very unofficial list of the top eight retailers they're watching based on which are making the most interesting moves: Who's launching new initiatives? Which partnerships are moving the needle? Which standout marketing campaigns are being created? In this month's episode, Committee members Arielle Feger and Suzy Davidkhanian will defend their list against Senior Analyst Blake Droesch, and Principal Analyst Sky Canaves, who will dispute the power rankings by attempting to move retailers up, down, on, or off the list.
The news: Publicis Groupe has won PayPal’s global media business, building on the holding company’s winning streak and proving to rivals that its momentum in securing major accounts shows no signs of slowing. WPP Media previously handled PayPal’s media account but resigned the account in April, citing the need to “pursue other opportunities,” per Ad Age. Our take: Publicis’ win of PayPal’s global media business underscores a growing advertiser shift toward integrated partnerships, where creative, media, and retail strategies merge to unlock greater performance and monetization potential.
The news: OpenAI is preparing to launch GPT-5, a model that will combine traditional GPT capabilities with o3-series reasoning—marking a major leap in performance and model simplification. Our take: GPT-5 could streamline content creation, search, and CX workflows, leading to renewed industry adoption and customization. Enterprise customers should test GPT-5’s API early. Align adoption with marketing workflows and consider consolidating tools into a single platform to reduce costs. Early movers will shape the future of customer engagement.
The news: Cyata launched a platform that detects, authenticates, and governs “agentic identities” as adoption of autonomous AI agents is exploding—96% of IT leaders will increase agent use in 2025, Cloudera reports. Digital agents integrating into the workforce pose new risks—ones traditional identity and access management (IAM) tools are not equipped to handle, per VentureBeat. Our take: Managing mixed human and agentic workers won’t be optional for long—it will become a baseline requirement as AI agents move from edge cases to everyday tools. Companies that delay could risk operational blind spots, compliance gaps, and uncontrolled AI autonomy.
The news: Amazon will pay The New York Times between $20 million and $25 million annually in a multiyear content licensing agreement that was announced in May. This amount, close to 1% of the Times’ total annual revenue, is one of the largest disclosed payments for news content licensing for generative AI (genAI) training. Our take: The Amazon–Times deal underscores the growing value of premium journalism in the AI era, setting a precedent for how tech companies can ethically license high-quality content. For advertisers, this signals a shift toward AI-powered platforms integrating trusted media brands, which could enhance user engagement and credibility.
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OpenAI is preparing to launch GPT-5 in early August. The newest and most powerful model combines traditional GPT capabilities with o3-series reasoning—marking a major leap in performance and model simplification. The consolidation play with GPT-5 could further cement OpenAI’s dominance if competitors are slow to respond.
The news: TV ad-supported viewing time grew 2% overall in Q2 across linear and streaming, reaching 73.6% of total time spent watching TV, per Nielsen—largely driven by streaming. Ad-supported streaming grew 7% to a 45.3% share—but broadcast and cable continued a downward trend. Our take: As streaming solidifies its lead in ad-supported viewership, the smartest advertisers will recognize that success hinges on striking a delicate balance of using streaming’s precision to target key audiences that are shifting to CTV, while leveraging linear’s scale and ability to drive action.
The triopoly looks stronger, but it's digital that's getting bigger. Amazon, Google, and Meta now command 58.8% of total US ad dollars, up from 47.1% in 2020. But that's not an indication that the triopoly's control of the digital ad market is growing.
The news: Google’s new Manage Subscriptions tool is starting to appear in Gmail on web, iOS, and Android, per MarTech. It lets users batch-unsubscribe from promotional emails—now sorted by frequency and sender name. Brands that over-email or deliver low-value content will feel the fallout. Even loyal subscribers may churn if their needs aren’t being met. Our take: Marketers already using segmentation—or dividing large email subscriber lists into smaller, more targeted groups based on shared characteristics—won’t see much fallout. The unsubscribe spike will primarily hit brands with poor targeting and those that are over-mailing. Gmail just turned inboxes into intent filters. Every send must earn its keep.
The findings: Deloitte’s July 2025 ConsumerSignals report gives us a glimpse into US banking customers’ current stressors and banks’ upcoming challenges. We saw that: deposits are about to drop, housing prices stress every generation, consumers are curbing their splurging, and they’re more worried than they were last year. Our take: Though US banking customers are facing a number of stressors, they’re demonstrating resilience and savvy that has helped them pull through. That resilience could be informed by advice from financial experts they trust, including at their FIs.
The news: Amazon’s Prime Video overtook Netflix in Brazil’s streaming market in Q2 2025, leading with 22% of user interest and edging out Netflix at 21%, according to JustWatch, per Meio & Mensagem. Prime Videos’ ascent presents new advertising opportunities in the country, while Netflix’s decline suggests potential audience fragmentation Our take: Brazil’s streaming war is shifting from subscriptions to hybrid models, and Prime Video wins on bundled utility. Netflix can catch up by scaling its ad tier and investing in local hits. The next battleground? Premium reach at a lower cost in a market where cultural relevance drives loyalty.
Data startup Astronomer turned an unlikely scandal into a viral branding win by embracing humor, celebrity power, and swift accountability. Following a Coldplay concert kiss-cam incident involving top execs, the company leaned in with a satirical ad starring Gwyneth Paltrow and backed by Ryan Reynolds’ Maximum Effort. The campaign’s charm came from its cultural timing, humor, and clear separation from product quality. Astronomer followed with decisive leadership changes and transparency, using the spotlight to explain its core offering. The result: a case study in how tone, timing, and authenticity can turn public mishaps into brand momentum.
Snacks maker Mars said it plans to invest an additional $2 billion in US manufacturing through next year to build new facilities and upgrade existing ones in wake of the Trump administration’s tariffs. Tariffs are leading some businesses to boost their US footprint, and we may see more investment announcements. But a key consideration is whether these expansion announcements will represent substantive, job-creating initiatives, or if they are largely symbolic moves designed to support the US government’s current messaging around American manufacturing.
On today’s podcast episode, we discuss what “authentic storytelling” looks like in practice, surprising findings about the authenticity levels between print and digital, and what’s most important when it comes to a “brand’s handshake.” Join our conversation with Senior Director of Podcasts and host, Marcus Johnson, Senior Director of Briefings, Jeremy Goldman, and Vice President of Brand Marketing at Quad, Heidi Waldusky. Listen everywhere you find podcasts and watch on YouTube and Spotify.
YouTube is the top recipient of AI chatbot referral traffic, receiving over three times as much traffic than Facebook or Wikipedia, according to May 2025 data from Similarweb.
Ocado Ads has partnered with data collaboration platform Permutive to make its first-party purchase data available to select UK publishers.
The news: A US TikTok ban will take effect if a sale isn’t completed by the September 17 deadline, per comments from US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Lutnick said on CNBC that TikTok will “go dark” if China does not agree to sell to a US owner. He also noted that any deal would require the US gaining control over both the app and its algorithms. Our take: Whether or not a full TikTok ban comes to pass, Lutnick’s comments reinforce a troubling trend: Advertisers are increasingly wary of the platform’s stability, accelerating the shift toward cross-platform strategies.
Fandom has partnered with Experian and Audigent to enhance its AI-driven Helix platform, integrating over 2,400 syndicated audience segments to deliver deeper fan insights. The move empowers marketers to combine third-party data with first-party fan behavior, unlocking targeting based on motivations, not just demographics. Early results show significant brand lift in awareness and purchase intent. This partnership marks Fandom’s evolution into a data-rich media platform, aiming to help advertisers tap into emotional fandom signals across CTV, mobile, and digital. Despite criticism over ad clutter, the platform’s scale and Gen Z reach position it as a leader in culture-driven targeting.
Instagram head Adam Mosseri clarified that using “link in bio” in post captions does not affect reach, aiming to dispel creator concerns that the algorithm punishes off-platform engagement. Despite his statement, creators remain skeptical, citing anecdotal dips in engagement when directing followers externally. As creators increasingly monetize through affiliate links, paid communities, and platforms like Substack, visibility control has become a high-stakes issue. Misinformation about Instagram’s algorithm leads to caution and second-guessing, creating friction for entrepreneurs growing businesses across multiple platforms. Real or perceived, lack of clarity undermines trust—and for creators, platform policies directly impact their bottom line.