Google Acquires Fitbit; $80bn Spent on More 5G Airwaves
In this weekly segment, ExchangeWire sums up key industry updates in ad tech from around the globe. In this edition: Google takes over Fitbit, despite ongoing protests against the acquisition; the FCC rakes in $80bn in a 5G airwaves auction; Netflix grows its subscriber base to over 200 million; and Gannett Co. reveals its plans to gain 10 million paid digital subscriptions by 2026. Google takes ownership of Fitbit Google has successfully acquired wearable health tech manufacturer Fitbit. Announced last week on [...]
FCC Argues for Looser Media Ownership Rules; Gannett Aims for 10m Paid Digital Subs
In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: the FCC brings its case for a relaxation of media ownership rules to the Supreme Court; Gannett announces it aims to acquire 10 million* paid digital subscribers by 2026; and Facebook reveals it will cease investment in Australia in response to the News Media Bargaining Code. FCC case for looser media ownership goes to Supreme Court The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has presented its latest case for the relaxation of media ownership rules to the Supreme Court. [...]
UK Introduces New Big Tech Regulator; Facebook Agrees to Pay for News Content
In this weekly segment, ExchangeWire sums up key industry updates in ad tech from around the globe. In this edition: the UK announces the creation of a new regulatory body to govern Big Tech; Facebook agrees to pay UK news outlets to publish their content on its platform; Salesforce closes in on Miscrosoft after acquiring Slack for $27bn; and LinkedIn is taken to court over allegations that it ‘inflated’ its ad metrics. UK sets up new Big Tech regulator The UK government [...]
Salesforce Acquires Slack for $27bn; Facebook Buys Kustomer for $1bn
In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: cloud marketing software company Salesforce acquires Slack for over $27bn, the largest purchase in the firm’s 21-year history; Facebook buys customer-service start-up Kustomer for USD $1bn; and Italy’s AGCM fines Apple €10m after ruling that the company misled customers in some of their iPhone ads. Salesforce buys Slack for $27bn Marketing cloud vendor Salesforce has acquired Slack for over USD $27bn (£20.2bn) in what is the largest deal in the company’s history. Announcing the move in Tuesday [...]
Facebook Will Pay UK News Outlets for Content; AWS Could be Huge Alone, Predicts Galloway
In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: Facebook agrees to pay UK news outlets to include their content on Facebook News; Professor Scott Galloway predicts that AWS could become the world’s biggest company if spun out from Amazon; and Zoom remains optimistic about fiscal forecasts despite cost of growing free user base. Facebook agrees to pay UK news outlets for content Facebook has agreed to pay UK news outlets for some of their content from January next year. The announcement comes as the social [...]
EU Criticised for Slow Big Tech Action; Ad Tech Trio Join Unified ID 2.0
In today’s ExchangeWire digest: EU criticised for slow antitrust action against big tech firms; ad tech trio PubMatic, Magnite, and Index Exchange, join the Unified ID 2.0 initiative; and brand performance marketing platform Launchmetrics acquires Parklu. EU criticised for slow big tech action The EU has been too slow to respond to anticompetitive threats imposed by big tech companies such as Google, Facebook, and Apple, as well as lacks the legal firepower to intervene appropriately, according to a newly-published report by the [...]
US Antitrust Chair Calls on Public to Curb Big Tech; WFA Reports Drop in Paused Ad Spend
In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: the chair of the antitrust subcommittee in the US Congress calls on the public to help rein in Big Tech; the WFA’s latest Crisis Response Tracker reports a decrease in the number of international companies pausing ad spend; and Facebook files a lawsuit against 2 companies over data scraping. Antitrust chair calls on public to help curb Big Tech The chair of the antitrust subcommittee in the US Congress has called on the public to help curb [...]
The 'Great Fragmentation' is Here: A Glorious Opportunity for the Industry & Investors
These are strange times, readers. COVID continues to tear away at the socio-economic fabric of the world. The once noble institutions of the ad tech ‘POWA’ breakfast, and the extended media lunch, have been reduced to sad Zoom/Google Meet/Microsoft Teams calls. And to top it all off, our industry is slowly being chewed alive in the cookie crunch. I’ve always been a contrarian by nature. When things are going well, I am deeply sceptical and fearful of unseen disasters. When things [...]
China Slams "Extortion" of US TikTok Deal; Facebook May Exit EU Over US Data Sharing Ban
In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: China denounces the US TikTok deal as “extortion”; Facebook warns it may have to leave the EU if it enforces a ban on data transfers to the US; and the UK sees its first tech sector trade union. China denounces TikTok deal as ‘extortion’ China has denounced the prospective deal between ByteDance and US firms Oracle and Walmart to keep TikTok in America, calling it “unfair” and “dirty”. The arrangement, which will purportedly see Beijing-based ByteDance booted [...]
FTC Could File Facebook Antitrust Suit By End of 2020; China's 5G Users Exceed 110 Million
In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: the Federal Trade Commission could reportedly file an antitrust suit against Facebook before the year is out; China reports its 5G users have climbed to over 110 million; and The Washington Post and Financial Times team up to offer joint digital subscriptions. FTC predicted to file antitrust lawsuit against Facebook The US’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is believed to be preparing to file an antitrust lawsuit against Facebook by the end of this year. The anticipated legal [...]