Issue #19: Top stories from Meta, MIQ and Cannes

☕ Hello there, adtech advocates

Pour a fresh filter coffee and skim last week’s standout stories in under two minutes.

🗞️ Top Stories

1. WhatsApp prepares to show ads in its Updates feed
   Meta confirmed that sponsored Status stories and promoted Channels will begin appearing in the Updates tab later this year. The Verge

2. MiQ launches AI first programmatic operating system, Sigma
   Leveraging 700 trillion consumer signals and unifying planning, activation and measurement, early pilots have cut setup time 60% and lifted ROI 18%. Business Wire

3. WPP plugs TikTok’s Symphony gen AI suite into WPP Open
   With this global agency integration teams can storyboard, script and localise TikTok ads with Symphony tools directly inside their Open workspace. WPP

4. Disney makes inventory buyable through Amazon DSP
   Starting Q3 2025, buyers will be able to access Disney’s marketplace via Amazon DSP, pairing Disney audiences with Amazon first party data. PPC Land

5. Google offers voluntary buyouts across search & ad teams

   Google has invited thousands of US staff to take severance packages, its latest control measure as the company moves towards an AI future. Search Engine Journal

6. Sky, ITV & Channel 4 team up on self-serve BVOD platform
   Using ITV’s Planet V tech, the broadcasters will let advertisers of any size buy campaigns across all three streaming services from a single dashboard. The Guardian

7. Moonbug builds in-house ad services arm for CoComelon & Blippi
   The kids content powerhouse has bundled audience data, creative, media buying and measurement into Moonbug Ad Services. AdExchanger

8. Dentsu partners to plan media with AI generated synthetic audiences
   Announced at Cannes, the partnership layers synthetic research panels from Evidenza onto Dentsu’s CCS data for faster testing and insights. MediaPost

9. Reddit links up with CVS Media for retail media targeting
   A new opportunity for advertisers to overlay first party shopper data onto Reddit communities, so brands can serve relevant posts and drive conversion. eMarketer

10. Amazon grabs exclusive access to Roku’s CTV inventory via its DSP
    The new deal makes Amazon DSP the sole programmatic gateway to Roku’s 80 million logged in US households. Digiday

11. DoubleVerify positions itself as a news ally with Publisher Council

    News accelerator and publisher council initiatives aims to curb over zealous keyword block lists and align ad spend with quality journalism. Business Wire

12. LinkedIn pushes deeper into CTV for B2B marketers
    A fresh AdExchanger report details how LinkedIn’s CTV network is helping B2B brands extend precision targeting beyond the feed. AdExchanger

13. Cannes Lions round-up: DSP partnerships dominate
    ExchangeWire recaps highlights from la Croisette where retail and streaming alliances led many festival headlines this year. ExchangeWire

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See you next time,

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