Navigate to the hottest topics:
Fingerprinting concerns: The British ICO criticizes Google for permitting advertisers to use fingerprinting techniques on connected TV (CTV). – 19 Dec
Regulatory reshuffle in the UK: The government names former Amazon UK leader Doug Gurr as interim CMA chair, hinting at a softer regulatory stance. – 22 Jan
Amazon challenges Criteo: Amazon directly competes with Criteo by unveiling its new Amazon Retail Ad Service, enabling retailers to run product ads on their own ecommerce sites. – 9 Jan
4 Feb 2025: TripleLift becomes an early beta participant for Amazon Ads’ Dynamic Traffic Engine—a tool that sends real-time “low demand” or “high demand” signals to help SSPs adjust inventory supply. [Exchange Wire]
3 Feb 2025: Apple’s attempt to participate in the Google Search antitrust trial is denied by the judge. [The Verge]
31 Jan 2025: Google releases its Q4 Privacy Sandbox Progress Report, summarizing industry feedback and highlighting ongoing discussions with regulators. [Gov.uk]
30 Jan 2025: Following extensive testing, Google launches its open-source Meridian marketing mix modeling (MMM) measurement tool for public use. [Google Blog]
29 Jan 2025:
Chrome will now mask users’ IP addresses in Incognito Mode, bolstering user privacy. [Digiday]
Don Marti of Raptive criticizes Privacy-Preserving Attribution for concealing potential attribution fraud and endorses the IAB Tech Lab’s ADMAP specification as a superior alternative. [AdExchanger]
28 Jan 2025: Microsoft doubles down on retail media by expanding its offerings with Curate for Commerce and Sponsored Promotions by Brands. Curate leverages first-party retail data to provide brands with offsite retailer ad inventory, while Sponsored Promotions targets shoppers within Microsoft’s retail ecosystem, including Bing. [Retail Brew]
23 Jan 2025: In the UK, the ICO extends its cookie banner compliance investigation from the top 200 to the top 1,000 websites and issues new guidance on “consent or pay” models. [ICO website]
22 Jan 2025:
The IAB Tech Lab finalizes version 1.0 of its PAIR specification as Google demonstrates its application in PAIR-driven campaigns. [IAB Tech Lab], [Google Blog]
In a major regulatory reshuffle, the UK government names interim CMA chair Doug Gurr, former Amazon UK leader. This move signals a shift toward less interventionist regulation that may ease scrutiny over initiatives like Google’s Privacy Sandbox. [CNBC]
14 Jan 2025: Under the British Digital Markets, Competition, and Consumers regulations, the CMA has launched an investigation into Big Tech’s dominance, with its first probe focusing on Google's stronghold in the search market. [Techcrunch]
9 Jan 2025: Amazon directly challenges Criteo by unveiling its Amazon Retail Ad Service, which enables retailers to use Amazon’s tools to sell product ads on their own ecommerce sites—outside of Amazon’s ecosystem. [Adweek]
7 Jan 2025: Google teams up with The Linux Foundation to launch the Supporters of Chromium-based Browsers fund, positioning Chrome as an open-source project. The initiative is backed by Meta, Microsoft, and Opera. [Chromium Blog]
24 Dec 2024:
Meta: The company introduces Robyn, an experimental, semi-automated, open-source marketing mix modeling tool. [GitHub]
Apple: In a strategic move, Apple seeks to join the next phase of Google’s antitrust trial over online search, asserting it has no plans to develop its own search engine and defending its existing agreement with Google. [Reuters]
23 Dec 2024:
The Japan Fair Trade Commission accuses Google of compelling smartphone manufacturers to pre-install its search app. [Japan Times]
Google officially proposes a remedy for its search trial, focusing exclusively on restricting its Search deals. [Google Blog]
19 Dec 2024: The British ICO criticizes Google for permitting advertisers to use fingerprinting techniques on connected TV (CTV). [The Guardian]
