Digiday

Ads are making their debut on Perplexity this month, led by Whole Foods Market, McCann Worldgroup, and PMG. But plenty others are holding back, unsure if the investment is worthwhile — at least for now.

Rather than rely on keyword targeting and traditional audience segments, Cognitiv’s platform uses its deep learning and OpenAI’s LLMs to analyze millions of websites each day to help advertisers target audiences without relying on cookies. When Index Exchange sends an impression, Cognitiv provides real-time analysis to predict which ads will likely convert and then sends it back with an advertiser deal ID. Index then sends the impression to the advertiser’s demand-side platform before placing a bid. #generativeAI #programmatic

Content growth is a major motivator for social commerce shops to bring live shopping and content operations to the U.S. — like SuperOrdinary is doing this month, Digiday has learned. As it builds more studios, the company is betting its livestream and commerce business will mirror its success in Asia. SuperOrdinary Creator Studios is opening 15 more studios in Los Angeles after building 30 studios across China and working with some 100,000 creators and affiliates with brands like Peter Thomas Roth Clinical Skin Care, Herschel Supply Company and Milk Makeup. It produces 200 livestreams per month globally, said Julian Reis, CEO and founder of SuperOrdinary.

WTF is The Trade Desk doing? It’s rolling out its own smart TV operating system Ventura, giving it direct control over the streaming TV experience. This paves the way for even more growth in its booming CTV ad business, which already makes up nearly half of its ad revenue and is still surging. #ctv #thetradedesk

Jared Belsky’s never been known to be shy, quiet and retiring. The co-founder and CEO of?agency group Acadia?has always spoken up, either through the press or on LinkedIn, about the industry issues he’s passionate about. Belsky’s latest passion point: fomenting awareness of – and resistance to – principal-based media on the part of agencies for their clients. And he’s going public with his efforts starting today, with the launch of a website,?https://lnkd.in/eSus6kfc, as well as an ad campaign that will run on LinkedIn as well as some advertising trade publications. #principalmedia

It might be an oversimplification to say Canadians are just nice people, but to a large degree it’s a true statement. In the world of agencies, that statement holds up if you look at the workings of Know Company Inc., an investment firm that’s taken minority stakes in 16 small agencies, mostly in the media space, and gives them access to tools, technology and business consulting expertise. Know Co., for lack of a better definition, is part holding company and part investment firm, and runs three divisions while based out of Edmonton, Alberta in Canada. Founded and run by CEO Vikram Seth, its goal is to help small agencies grow their business and services without taking control — a form of corporate altruism rarely seen in an industry that thrives on stealing business from each other. In this piece by Michael Burgi, we also speak to Sam Richardson of Mediology, and Steve Boehler of Mercer Island Group.

The Las Vegas Grand Prix?might only be in its second year, but it’s fast becoming one of the flagship stops on Formula 1’s worldwide tour. And for marketers looking to align their brands with F1’s expanded appeal to audiences, the Las Vegas Grand Prix is providing a slip road into the sport. Payment company Mastercard, for example, has chosen this weekend’s race as the moment to debut its sponsorship of racing team McLaren Racing. Mastercard isn’t alone in investing more into F1.?In 2024, the sport has drawn in new non-endemic advertisers such as LVMH, electronics maker Lenovo, beauty brand?Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, and B2B firm Xerox. Though Raja Rajamannar, Mastercard’s chief marketing and communications officer, didn’t share financial details of the Mastercard-McLaren alliance, F1 sponsorships don’t come cheap — LVMH’s 10-year partnership deal will reportedly cost?$100 million a year. In this piece by Sam Bradley, we also speak to Maria Kivimaa of Octagon, and Rick Cuellar of Right Formula.

As Electronic Arts (EA) beefs up its advertising inventory, PepsiCo is taking advantage by bringing Gatorade into the world of “EA Sports FC.” When Electronic Arts?ended its partnership with FIFA?last year —?changing the name of its long-running association football series “FIFA” to “EA Sports FC” in the process — PepsiCo was one of the new title’s founding partners. For the past year, Pepsi branding has been located everywhere inside the console version of “EA FC,” from advertisements in the virtual football pitch to branded in-game events and activations. Yesterday, Nov. 21, PepsiCo announced an expansion of the multi-year partnership, bringing Gatorade branding into “EA FC” for the first time. As part of this expansion, both Gatorade and Pepsi products will be advertised for the first time inside the mobile version of “EA Sports FC.” To learn more about the expansion of the partnership between PepsiCo and “EA Sports FC,” Digiday spoke to PepsiCo vp of global sports and entertainment partnerships Adam Warner for an annotated Q&A. Story by Alexander Lee

Recent headlines may lead one to think that X is dead. Last week, The Guardian?joined NPR?in vowing not to post on the platform anymore,?citing the toxicity?on Twitter 2.0 and X owner Elon Musk’s political involvement. Meanwhile, X alternative Bluesky Social?received an influx of new users?after the U.S. presidential election, with publishers like The Economist, THE WEEK, POLITICO and SEMAFOR?following them there. But don’t expect The Guardian to be the start of a wave of publishers making splashy announcements about their decision to abandon X for good. Notably, NPR and The Guardian have not deleted their accounts on the platform, meaning there is a future where they could return. In this piece by Sara Guaglione, we speak to Martin Little of Reach plc.