The Big Story

Media planning is evolving in the lead-up to the midterm elections. Geotargeted CTV campaigns are winning over local media placements. Plus: Is Meta the new AOL? The argument for and against a behemoth’s slow decline.

Data clean rooms and regulation could be topics on The Big Story any week this year. But despite the tsunami of news coverage on both topics, each remains largely unknown or misunderstood.

Recent speeches by DOJ and FTC leaders share a common thread, each organization sees a need for more aggressive market intervention and action to deliver on its mission. Plus: Getting the industry to weigh in on the definition of "premium."

As measurement challenges intensify for DTC marketers, TikTokalytics vendors have been filling the gap. Plus: Analyzing the language at an FTC hearing on “commercial surveillance.”

The fate of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act hangs in the balance. With strong support by voters in favor of data privacy, along with bipartisan momentum, the federal privacy law should be advancing – but current detractors say it’s not strong enough.

There’s a storm brewing and wildfires are raging. We’re not talking about hurricane season or climate change, though, but rather the fallout for ad tech from the macroeconomic downturn and privacy lawsuits, including the FTC’s recent complaint against Kochava which challenges the programmatic data-selling model writ large.

The latest weapon in the streaming wars is HBO’s “House of the Dragon.” But behind the glamour of this high-profile project, the bean counters are busy cutting costs, as streaming services rationalize after the pandemic. Plus: the lowdown on the latest privacy lawsuit against Oracle.

Signal loss combined with privacy concerns is helping bring old-school panel measurement back in style. Google just started recruiting for a panel this week. Plus: the future of attention metrics.

AppLovin wants Unity – but only if Unity calls off its planned acquisition of ironSource. Why doesn’t AppLovin want ironSource? And how is Apple’s ATT driving consolidation in mobile ad tech? Listen in. Plus: The Trade Desk claims to benefit whenever a regulator starts investigating Google.

Meta just got sued over an alleged violation of HIPAA. But where exactly does the health privacy law apply? With the recent overturn of Roe v. Wade, it’s more important than ever for digital advertisers to understand how HIPAA protects (and doesn’t protect) the use of sensitive health data in ad campaigns. Plus: Understanding the resurgence of MMM and the rise of incrementality measurement.