The Friday Five: Google gets fine annulled, Instagram to give parents more control, and diversity sells according to study

Hello all and welcome back to The Friday Five!?

We have broken down five of the most interesting stories from the past week from the worlds of tech, social media, and digital marketing.

Today, we take a look at Google, who successfully challenged a €1.49bn fine. We also look at the benefit of ‘woke’ advertising for business growth, TikTok’s recent court appearance, Instagram’s new privacy measures for under-18s and SkyBet’s unlawful processing practice.?

Wow. We've got a lot to unpack, let’s get started shall we?

1. Google wins legal battle and sees €1.49bn fine annulled

This week, Google experienced a rare win by successfully challenging a €1.49bn fine imposed by the European Commission; the tech giant was accused of abusing its marketing dominance by restricting third-party ads from 2006 to 2016.?

Despite Google having faced many antitrust fines (€8.2bn in total), Europe’s second-highest court ruled that, in this case, the European Commission was insufficient in their assessment, and made too many errors and this resulted in the fine being annulled.

The European Commission is considering an appeal but the court annulled the decision as the commission failed to provide sufficient evidence and did not consider ‘all the relevant circumstances’ about the contract clauses and market conditions.?

However, Google isn’t out of the water yet as the company still remains under global security with many investigations into their advertising practices still ongoing.??

Read more on this story by visiting BBC News .

2. Study shows ‘woke’ works for brands who promote inclusion

The UN Women’s Unstereotype Alliance found that diverse representation in advertisements actually boosts business performance in relation to consumer preference and long-term sales.?

The study analysed data from 392 brands across 58 countries and concluded that businesses that incorporate authenticity and diversity have a clear advantage over competitors; a 3.5% boost in short-term sales and a 16% boost in long-term sales.

They also found 62% of consumers were more likely to choose a product if the advertisement celebrated diversity.?

The alliance was launched in 2017 to combat harmful stereotypes and emphasises the importance of inclusivity and diversity for financial success and business growth.?

This research will come as a shock to many who claim ‘woke’ advertising is damaging to brands.

The findings provide concrete evidence encouraging brands to commit to diversity for both social impact and commercial gain.

Learn more about this story on Marketing Beat .

3. TikTok back in court, arguing US ban poses a 'significant' threat to free speech

At the start of this week, TikTok appeared in court to challenge a US law wanting to ban the app unless it is sold to ByteDance.

The social media giant is concerned that the ban would have a ‘staggering’ impact on the free speech of US users.?

The law stemmed from concerns that the Chinese government could access user data. TikTok and ByteDance strongly deny these allegations; they argue the law is based on no evidence of wrongdoing.?

Judges did consider whether the law would infringe on user’s free speech and if TikTok has been targeted specifically. The Government stated that TikTok’s data is controlled by ByteDance in China, which could raise national security concerns.??

It is possible this case could end up in the US Supreme Court and could have a significant impact on TikTok and free speech.?

Learn more on BBC News .

4. Instagram introduces strict privacy measures giving parents more control

This week, Instagram will introduce new safety measures for ‘teen accounts’ that give parents increased control over content visibility and approval for new followers for their children.

The new restrictions will start for all under 18 users in the UK, US, Canada and Australia. The settings will be enabled by default. Over-15s will be able to adjust the settings but under-15s will need parental permission to make any changes.?

Other restrictions relate to sensitive content and muting notifications overnight. Despite having the ability to adjust these settings, parents will not be able to view private messages.?

Teen online safety is a huge concern, following heartbreaking cases such as Molly Russell’s, whose death was linked to harmful content on Instagram.

Although the new safety measures have been welcomed by the public, many, including Molly’s father, are sceptical and cautious about Instagram’s true commitment to teen safety online.?

The Information Commissioner’s Office Executive Director of regulatory risk, Stephen Almond said “We’ll keep pushing where we think industry can go further, and take action where companies are not doing the right thing.”

Find more on this story on Marketing Beat .

5. Sky Bet under the cosh for processing personal info with consent

Sky Betting and Gaming has been hit by the ICO after being found to be unlawfully processing consumer data.?

It appears that between January and March 2023, SkyBet shared access to consumer data with ad tech companies before consumers had the option to accept or reject cookies. Without asking for consent, SkyBet has allowed companies to potentially target users with personalised ads that they didn't agree to.?

The ICO determined that SkyBet’s processing practices were unintentional but still unlawful. Following this, SkyBet updated its site making sure users had the option to reject cookies before allowing access to ad tech companies.?

The ICO is making a strong effort to crack down on the unlawful processing of consumer data. They reviewed the top 100 UK websites and found 53 data law violations.

Stephen Bonner, the deputy commissioner, said: “Our enforcement action against Sky Betting and Gaming is a warning that there will be consequences if organisations breach the law, and people are denied the choice over targeted advertising”

Find out more at Marketing Week .

…and just like that, another Friday Five has come to an end but don’t worry we will be here next Friday with even more digital marketing news stories! Subscribe now to make sure you don’t miss it!?

We hope you have a lovely weekend. Goodbye for now!?