Advertising & Marketing

VC and private equity can’t invest in Chinese tech with military inclinations. China is considering countermeasures, which could disrupt tech supply chains.

US Supreme Court denies Epic Games’ appeal against Apple’s App Store payment practices, maintaining the current commission system amid ongoing antitrust concerns.

Amazon accused of ‘peak absurdity’ over office badge scan email: Employees say the tech giant falsely accused them of not following return-to-office policies. Clear policies and communication are necessary.

Lyft diversifies revenue with in-app ads: User data to optimize targeting while mitigating privacy concerns.

Disney+ and Hulu bundle up, but at a much higher cost: Disney is cranking up streaming pricing and starting a password-sharing crackdown to increase revenues.

ISpot bridges the buy-side measurement gap: The company has partnered with ad agency Camelot to help buyers navigate the fractured measurement space.

Meta rehires laid-off workers: Big Tech competition and economic improvement mean the company needs the employees it cut, calling into question the “year of efficiency” strategy.

Physical retail must adapt to intensifying competition from ecommerce. Every physical retail incumbent feeling heat from Amazon recognizes the need to better compete with digital’s informational and convenience advantages. But they must do so without losing the experiential edge offered by brick-and-mortar.

Key stat: Generative AI adoption will climb to 77.8 million users in the two years following the November 2022 release of ChatGPT, more than doubling the adoption rate of both tablets and smartphones, according to our forecast.

For Wix, consolidating its marketing stack not only improves internal alignment but also results in an improved customer experience. The website-building company operates with teams worldwide, and is currently scaling down from about seven different marketing automation platforms.

Cloud gaming expansion is in the works and could sustain user engagement amid content strikes.

We’re seeing record bankruptcies among VC-backed startups. Factors include rate hikes, investment shortages, and bank collapses. AI funding rises, but potential oversaturation looms.

On today's episode, we discuss whether Amazon can keep expenses down while also keeping customers happy, where the company will place its bets on grocery, and how its advertising arm has performed of late. "In Other News," we talk about why most retailers site searches aren't working and how many streaming viewers will watch ads to save a few bucks. Tune in to the discussion with our director of Briefings Jeremy Goldman and analyst Zak Stambor.

Streaming surge: Disney boosts ad-supported Disney+ subscribers; profitability challenges persist despite $87 billion revenue.

Key stat: 61% of US paid search marketers think future chat-based search advertising will be very or extremely effective, according to NP Digital.

A $5B lawsuit over Chrome’s ‘Incognito mode’ privacy moves closer to trial. Plaintiffs argue Google misused data, but Google stands firm on its transparency.

AI-enhanced Bing Chat heads to Chrome, Safari: Microsoft tries to counter Google’s search dominance and grow revenue as Bing outgrows its Edge beginnings.

Amazon dominates the Arm-server market, boosting AWS’ edge in AI, IoT, and edge computing. Custom chips offer performance and cost advantages over competitors like Google and Microsoft.

More European troubles for Meta: The social media giant will be fined nearly $100,000 per day in Norway over data privacy violations.

Retail media is one of the fastest growing ad channels we track, due in part to the allure of closed-loop attribution powered by retailers’ first-party consumer data. But advertisers are starting to curb their enthusiasm given measurement challenges stemming from the lack of methodological standards across platforms. As it stands, it’s nearly impossible for advertisers to compare platforms against each other, which can lead to misallocation of budgets.