The wealthiest person vs. the most valuable company: Elon Musk is attacking Apple for ceasing advertising and threatening to pull Twitter from its App Store, setting up a monumental clash he can’t possibly win.
Regulators enforce influencer marketing standards: Google and iHeartMedia face a lawsuit for radio ads in which hosts lied about using the Pixel 4 phone.
Amazon Ads fail at the worst possible time: A measurement mishap on Black Friday extended into the weekend and cost some agencies and brands dearly.
China’s protest flashpoint: Citizens are taking to the streets in the most significant protest against the Communist Party’s tightening grip since the Tiananmen crisis. Geopolitical strife could shut down the world’s factory.
A fading internet giant meets a fading ad format: Yahoo acquired a 25% stake in programmatic ad firm Taboola in a harbinger of bigger deals on the horizon.
Twitter’s latest data breach: Phone numbers, email addresses, and more for millions of Twitter users is out in the wild and could be used for phishing. The leak underscores growing vulnerabilities at Twitter.
The ad downturn isn’t bad news for everyone: Smaller brands are getting extra visibility from ad spend now that big advertisers are pulling back.
Though the ad industry has had a notoriously difficult year, search advertising is well positioned to grow in the years to come. On the consumer side, however, search behaviors are shifting, which could spell danger for those who don’t innovate.
A turnaround for the metaverse: The first half of 2022 was marked by high-profile Web3 brand partnerships, but a series of failures have softened interest.
The toll of tech’s frenetic upgrade cadence: A riot in the world’s biggest iPhone factory underscores the need for technology’s cadence to slow down, especially in light of slowing innovation and lack of net new breakthroughs.
Cybercrime costs escalate: The rise of cybercrime and phishing attacks could have devastating effects on businesses of all sizes, but economic uncertainty could drive companies to cut back on security spending.
Meta is still trying to improve its teen user image: Its latest attempt to quell its poor reputation with parents and regulators is a slew of privacy features for teens.
Just under 2% of the US population will drive an electric car next year, for a total of 5.4 million drivers, per our forecast. By contrast, more than half the population, or 151.4 million people, will drive a connected car in 2023.
Mobile duopoly under scrutiny: Apple and Google own the platforms, mobile devices, operating systems, app stores, and browsers. UK regulators are preparing to enact more stringent regulations.
Marketers adjust goals in uncertain economy: Most senior leaders see value of social media and online video, survey shows.
Amazon has a customer satisfaction problem: Shoppers complain of delayed deliveries, poor customer service, and irrelevant search results, dragging its satisfaction rating to a record low.
Walmart will net $2.22 billion in US digital ad revenues this year, per our forecast.
Digital video viewership is being propped up by connected TVs (CTVs), which allow for easy access to streaming apps on the biggest screens in households