The Current Report

Behind the scenes of Ram's $16 million Big Game commercial with Glen Powell

Celebrities reigned once again in many commercials for the Big Game, including Glen Powell doing his own version of Goldilocks in a spot for Ram Trucks. Two executives a

CPG brands use big data to increase brand loyalty ahead of Big Game

We’re days away from the Big Game, and with that, watch parties full of snacks. Grocery prices are going up, as everything from bird flu to bad weather are hiking up pri

Tubi streaming Big Game is full circle moment after infamous ad

Two years after Tubi's ad during football's Big Game stole the attention of millions, the FAST platform is streaming the game itself. It's an incredible turn of events a

Where TikTok ad spend might go if it gets banned in the U.S.

The TikTok party didn’t stop in the U.S. as President Trump signed an executive order to keep it active for 75 days. With the clock ticking, marketers are strategizing th

Grading VML's merger a year in with CEO Jon Cook

To read the full stories included in this episode: US Forecast Trends to Watch in 2025: https://bit.ly/4g5zsHA The Current Report is our weekly news roundup of what’s h

How Initiative thinks about maximizing brands ad dollars

Still fresh off the news of Omnicom and IPG merging, all the agencies that work within the holding companies are plugging along. IPG’s Initiative is one of those agencies

CES 2025: Spotify's Lee Brown on matching media investment to audio's consumption

Ad tech dominated the CES experience again, with ease as a key tenet of conversations across the week. Making the advertising experience easy for brands and agencies is

Streaming, Google and podcasts: Recapping the year in ad tech

It’s the final episode of The Current Report for the year, so we’re recapping the biggest stories and topics of 2024 – from streaming to potential fallout with both of Go

The Omnicom IPG merger and agencies in the 21st century

The news of Omnicom and IPG merging lit up the advertising world last week. The holding companies had a combined revenue of more than $25 billion in 2023, and merging cou

Why the Walmart VIZIO deal opens up whole new world of advertising

Walmart finalized its $2.3 billion acquisition of VIZIO. And for for Walmart, this deal is clearly about more than selling TVs. Walmart can match its shopping transactio

Unpacking Google, DOJ closing arguments and future fallout

The landmark adtech trial of the century has now officially come and gone. Google and the Department of Justice wrapped up their cases with closing arguments last week.

The historic proposals to break up Google's search monopoly

The Department of Justice is proposing big remedies in the Google antitrust search case, after a landmark ruling in August found Google held a monopoly over search. These

SMBs gifted with retail data this holiday shopping season

The holiday season is fast approaching and Americans are ready to spend. Adults in the US plan to spend an average of $2,100 dollars, up 7% from last year, according to B

How an AI model correctly predicted the president 3 elections in a row

Donald Trump was once again elected as the President of the United States last week, becoming the first president since Grover Cleveland in 1892 to win back the presidenc

Changing the perception of advertising alongside news with hard data

On the eve of election day in the U.S, the number of news outlets reporting on the races is continuing to dissipate. A recent report from Northwestern University found 12

How brands succeed with storytelling over messaging

More and more, brands are under pressure to figure out if they should attach to cultural or social issues, or stay out of those issues all together. Some of that pressur

Inside Paypal's ad network joining the retail media goldrush

More non-traditional advertising companies have entered the ad game recently with their own media networks, from Uber to United Airlines leveraging their deep amounts of

How Roku sees the upfront market evolving as deals activate

Upfront deals are now being activated now that the fall season is underway – the traditional moment when TV networks launch their prime shows. But as we’ve seen in recen

Where advertising's largest seismic change in the last decade is coming from

The Current is on the ground at Advertising Week in New York, speaking to top-level marketers about the industry's biggest topics, from the future of streaming to retail

What's next after Google's landmark advertising antitrust trial

Now that the Google antitrust trial focused around digital advertising has ended, the next move will be the Department of Justice and Google coming back to the courtroom