MediaPost | Around the Net In Media

Microsoft Teams Up With HubSpot To Help B2B Advertisers

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 21:22:34 -0400

Microsoft has formed an integration with HubSpot to help connect B2B ad campaigns with revenue, pipeline and leads, Search Engine Land reports. With this arrangement, Microsoft Advertising is available in HubSpot, and advertisers can use CRM data to reach prospects Bing, Copilot, Outlook, Xbox and other Microsoft properties. In addition, advertisers will gain access to LinkedIn.

U.S., Other Countries Say Social Media Harms Democracy

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 21:14:51 -0400

Other countries are catching up with the United States in negativity toward social media, Pew Research
Center reports. While 64% in the US feel social media is harming democracy, that feeling is shared by 70% in the Netherlands, up from 54% four years ago. And it has dramatically increased in the UK and Canada. Meanwhile, 87% of Americans say social media access has made it easier to manipulate people with false information, roughly the same as the median percentage in other high-income countries. Pew surveyed consumers in 37 nations.

Judge Tosses Williams-Sonoma's False Ad Case Against Quince

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 20:54:45 -0400

Quince has won at least a temporary victory in the false advertising suit filed against it by Williams-Sonoma (WSI) in 2025, Fashion Law reports. In dismissing the action, U.S. Judge Edward J. Davila held that WSI failed to plausibly show actionable false or misleading advertising. WSI accused Quince of pursuing a “widespread false advertising campaign,” in which it argued that consumers could get the same products offered by WSI for less. WSI can still amend its complaint. The case is on file with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Kroger Study Ties Retail Media Creative With Conversions

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 20:46:30 -0400

Kroger says it can forecast ecommerce purchase conversions, using predictive creative scoring prior to campaign launch, based on a study done with Vidmob and trade association MMA Global, Grocery Dive reports. The study found that predictive creative scoring can forecast conversions with 81% accuracy, and that there is a strong tie between creative and business outcomes.

MGM Resorts May Make A Bid For People Inc.

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 01:06:48 -0400

MGM Resorts, a recent purchase target for Barry Diller’s People Inc., may now turn the tables and acquire People Inc., The Wall Street Journal reports. MGM is now deciding whether to make a bid, sources said. People has a market value of around $2.7 billion, whereas MGM’s is about $8.5 billion. People Inc. continues to own a 27% share in MGM Resorts.

Newsom Signs Tax Credit Bill To Help Local Newsrooms

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 01:02:54 -0400

California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a bill that will provide $20,000 in tax credits to newsrooms for each of five reporters they hire, and $15,000 for additional journalists, with no cap, Cal Matters reports. The tax credits are available to print, broadcast, digital and nonprofit newsrooms that produce original reporting. “When you lose local journalism, partisan organizations step in,” Newsom said during a press conference. “More division, more anger, more bias that’s expressed. And we’ve seen it here in California.”

Conde Nast CEO Roger Lynch Is Leaving For Mattel

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 00:57:22 -0400

Roger Lynch is stepping down as CEO of Condé Nast after seven years on the job and will now head toy company Mattel, Business Insider reports. Ynon Kreiz, now the CEO of Mattel, will depart on Friday. Lynch has been on the board of Mattel since 2018 and will remain on the board of Condé Nast.

Amazon Could Face AI Threat To Its Ad Revenue, Takes Action In Response

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 00:53:29 -0400

Amazon will lose advertising revenue if AI assistants become the place where consumers make buying decisions, Benzinga reports. These shoppers would potentially bypass Amazon’s sponsored listings. But Amazon is acting on the threat. It has combined Rufus and Alexa+ into Alexa for Shopping. The latter is an agentic assistant that offers recommendations, product comparisons and other information.

GOP Voters Lead Uptick In Trust In Media

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 23:48:34 -0400

Republicans have led a resurgence in trust in the media, according to a new Gallup survey, The Hill reports. Trust in mass media grew by 5% this year to 33%. This included newspapers, television and radio. Republicans drove the increase — 22% said they trusted the media, an 8% hike over 2025. Last year’s overall trust figure of 28% was a new low.

Meta Had A Strong Second Quarter, But Its Operating Margin Fell

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 23:41:58 -0400

Meta achieved strong revenue results in the second quarter, including improvements in its advertising business, but its operating cash flow was almost all absorbed by capital expenditures, according to an analysis by Seeking Alpha. The company generated $60.8 billion, a 28% increases YoY, But its operating margin sank to 31%, down from 43% during the same period last year. The analyst did not feel comfortable adding a large premium to Meta’s current market price until there is a clear outlook regarding its financial performance.

Guy Raz To Work With Vox Media On The 'How I Built This' Podcast

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 23:38:45 -0400

How I Built This, a podcast featuring interviews with entrepreneurs on how they built their businesses, will now be owned by Guy Raz, the star of the show. This fall, the podcast will debut video episodes on YouTube and social media platforms. Raz and Vox also plan to bring back live events. There have been more than 700 episodes since the podcast was launched in 2016.

Rich Silverstein, Goodby Silverstein & Partners Co-Founder, To Retire

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Legendary San Francisco adman Rich Silverstein is retiring after 58 years in the industry, the San Francisco Standard reports. As co-founder of Goodby Silverstein & Partners, a Chinatown-based ad agency, he is known for subverting or blowing up archetypes. His 1985 ad for the Mill Valley Film Festival portrayed "regular" local workers as cinephiles who had opinions on the French avant-garde. In one of his new activities, Silverstein is writing a musical about the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Florida AG Warns Google, Meta To Stop Running Casino Ads

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 23:58:48 -0400

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has written to five online platforms, including Google, Meta, Reddit, Snap and TikTok, demanding that they stop taking advertising for casinos aimed at state residents, Casino.org reports. “It has come to my attention that your company may be advertising illegal 'sweepstakes' casinos on its social media platforms to residents of Florida,” Uthmeier wrote to Google. “Promoting illegal gambling is a crime under Florida law.”

Meta, YouTube Will Take Ads For Musk Documentary

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 23:57:36 -0400

Meta and YouTube say they will accept advertising for Alex Gibney’s Elon Musk documentary despite The Hollywood Reporter reporting that Meta, YouTube, TikTok and X had all refused to do so, TechCrunch reports. “This was an error and the ads are being restored,” a Meta spokesperson said. “This was an error and the ads are being restored.” Musk recently posted on X that “dogs**t is worth more respect than Gibney.”

Google Loosens Restrictions On Booze Advertising On YouTube

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 23:53:25 -0400

Google will start allowing personalized alcohol advertising on YouTube on Oct. 30, Yahoo/Tech reports, sourcing Meininger’s International. Alcoholic beverages alcohol-related products and alcohol alternatives can be advertised where permitted under state regulations. Previously, Google considered alcohol as a sensitive interest categories, and restricted personalized advertising.

Firms Team Up To Bring Show-Level Attribution To Podcast Ads

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 23:37:50 -0400

Podcasters are being offered show-level data on which podcasts are driving sales, thanks to an integration between Fairing and Podscribe, Net Influencer reports. This arrangement fills in a gap caused by a change in listening habits. Podcast attribution has long depended on IP matching, which suffices for RSS-distributed audio, but it cannot measure listening on platforms like YouTube. Going forward, every active Podscribe campaign will automatically populate as a response option in Fairing’s post-purchase surveys. Fairing will verify these conversions when it sends that response back to Podscribe.

Groups File Amicus Brief To Block Paramount-Discovery Merger

Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:13:44 -0400

Groups uniting under the Block the Merger banner, filed a third-party brief on Friday, opposing the merger of Paramount Skydance and Discovery, Variety reports. This occurred after 12 state attorneys general signed a deal to settle their action over the merger. “The arguments laid out in this brief reflect the concerns that just days ago, California Attorney General Bonta also willingly voiced,” the group said in a joint statement. “While we may never know what caused the radical turnabout to deliver such a toothless settlement, we do know that this consent decree bucks governmental safeguards designed to protect the public from harm. The court should reject it outright.”

Media Traffic Falls Due To AI Summary Products

Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:10:06 -0400

Traffic to media web sites has plummeted over the past year, as Google and other tech giants funnel into artificial intelligence (AI) products that summarize journalism without encouraging users to click through to the source articles, Futurism reports. The number fell from 70 million visitors a month in July 2024 to slightly more than 47 million in July 2026. Meanwhile, a firm named Brown Brothers Media buys up defunct media properties and to convert them AI-driven content mills.

Meta Is Gambling $200 Billion A Year On AI

Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:01:36 -0400

Meta is taking a structurally irreversible gamble worth roughly $200 billion in annual capital expenditure to prove that its AI vision works, BigGo writes in an analysis. The bull side of the argument questions whether AI can transform “every pixel of every photo into an auctionable ad,” BigGo says. The bull case is that Meta’s lease and other obligations may outlast the market’s patience.

Congress Passes Law Mandating AM Radios In New Vehicles

Sun, 27 Sep 2026 17:55:05 -0400

A bill that would require automakers to include AM radio in new passenger vehicles has been passed by the House of Representatives, WTVB reports. The bipartisan AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act was supported by safety advocates and rural lawmakers who argued that it serves as a lifeline during natural disasters and severe weather.

RedBird Capital Partners To Acquire Puck

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:17:45 -0400

Investment firm RedBird Capital Partners is acquiring Puck, the five year-old media startup that is valued at $250 million, Variety reports. Redbird is a backer of other media properties, including Paramount Skydance and its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery. It could be awkward for Puck, which has been covering Paramount and the merger. But CEO Sarah Personette and Jon Kelly, co-founder and editor in chief, said in a memo to the staff that the merger “does not change our editorial independence, our differentiated business model, or the things that make Puck, Puck.” The deal will close in about a month pending regulatory approval.

People Inc. Retracts Proposal To Buy MGM's Remaining Shares

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:12:05 -0400

Barry Diller's People Inc. has withdrawn its bid to buy all public shares of MGM Resorts International, sending MGM’s shares tumbling by 8%. Reuters reports. People, the owner of a 27% stake, offered to purchase the remaining shares, worth more than $18 billion, in June. "We didn't feel the mix was coming together in the way we had hoped and have decided not to pursue taking the company private at this time," Diller commented. But People is interested in pursuing a strategic transaction with MGM.

AI Is Presenting A New Model For Ad Infrastructure

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:06:42 -0400

Artificial intelligence has expanded beyond individual outputs to running entire processes, Alex Vasekin, CEO of Adtech holding, writes in TechHQ. That includes launching and managing campaigns, adjusting bids and overseeing analytics, traffic quality and fraud prevention. “What’s emerging isn’t a random collection of AI features but rather a whole new model for how advertising infrastructure works,” Vasekin says.

Consumers Use AI Agents To Deal With Customer Service AI Agents

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:01:31 -0400

Businesses using AI agents for customer service are getting a taste of their own medicine, Business Insider reports. Consumers are increasingly using AI Agents to call customer-service lines, wait on hold, negotiate bills or cancel subscriptions. These AI calls represent a small share of total volume, but banks, insurers, retailers and outsourcing firms are bracing themselves for greater growth.

Citi To Start Ad Business With Targeting Based On Purchases

Wed, 23 Sep 2026 22:25:05 -0400

Citi is launching an advertising business with a new unit called Citi Commerce Media, Business Insider reports. The bank will allow brands to reach its 70 million customers with advertising on its app and website based on their spending histories. The platform will be informed by 6.5 billion annual transactions across more than 700 spending categories. The company claims it achieved a 15% lift with two pilot campaigns.

McDonald's To Launch Media Network, Runs Ads In Some Stores

Wed, 23 Sep 2026 22:22:39 -0400

McDonald’s said it will create its own media network, hoping to build a $1 billion business, CNBC reports. In a pilot starting last month, 450 restaurants began displaying advertising for other brands on its digital drive-through order boards. These were company owned stores, and the program has not yet been rolled out to franchises. McDonald’s is following in the footsteps of Amazon and Walmart.

Over Half Of Retail Marketers Are Increasing Their Holiday Ad Budgets

Wed, 23 Sep 2026 22:15:16 -0400

Retail marketers are gearing up for the holidays, with 55% increasing their budgets compared to 44% last year, according to Yahoo DSP’s 2026 Holiday Shopping Study, Chain Store Age reports. Of the agencies polled, 57% are planning increases, as are 54% of marketers. In addition, 77% of advertisers expect to launch their holiday campaigns by November. October is the biggest month, with 34% launching then.

San Francisco Sues Trump Media Over Early Access For Firms That Pay

Tue, 22 Sep 2026 18:38:56 -0400

The city’s attorney, David Chiu, argued that Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) violated California’s Unfair Competition Law, a state law against insider trading. “These everyday investors are placed at a substantial disadvantage to sophisticated firms willing and able to pay extraordinary sums for advanced access to market-moving information,” wrote David Chiu, city attorney, in the lawsuit. “Trump Media’s scheme is unprecedented in its monetization of nonpublic information obtained through government service and sold on the private market.”

Taboola Offers Platform For Converting Shoppers Who Show Intent

Tue, 22 Sep 2026 18:35:13 -0400

Taboola Inc. has launched an identity offering called Realize ID that it says can help performance marketers act on open-web intent, MarketScreener reports. The new offering, which supports Taboola’s Realize advertising platform, allows advertisers to convert shoppers who have shown intent across the fragmented internet. Taboola operates on both sides of the transaction, advertiser and publisher, in a closed loop.

Google's Former Safety Chief Calls For Slowdown In AI Development

Tue, 22 Sep 2026 18:28:59 -0400

Tom Siegel, the former vice president of trust and safety at Google, has called for a slowdown in AI development, warning that "AI can cause more harm to children than social media has," Reuters reports. "We find ourselves in a really terrible situation in terms of what AI is doing to kids," Siegel said. "The idea that the industry will figure it out by itself without outside help is unrealistic."