Complex

BuzzFeed took another lap around its AI-related talking points as its advertising business took another lap around the drain.

In today’s newsletter: The “user agent” concept is dead; principal-based buying is just arbitrage by another name; and a deep dive into BuzzFeed’s doomed acquisition of Complex.

Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here. Variation On A Theme Google launched a new Performance Max search feature called “search themes,” a rare opportunity to learn from the black box that is PMax campaigns. Search themes are broad terms that can inform targeting, even if the company doesn’t bid […]

BuzzFeed is “laser focused” on using AI-generated content to drive audiences to its owned-and-operated platforms and away from social media, CEO Jonah Peretti told investors.

BuzzFeed is sticking to its conviction that journalism is old news and influencer-led video and generative AI are the future.

BuzzFeed hopes its investments in trendy tech like generative AI and short-form vertical video, with a bigger focus on commerce, will eventually pay dividends.

Brand awareness is top of mind for PepsiCo’s senior director of media strategy and investment Katie Haniffy. And PepsiCo is focused on adjusting its brand awareness campaigns in response to shifting consumer behavior, as well as pivoting to keep up with the latest evolutions in ad tech.

Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here. Swiftly Goes The Retail Long Tail The retail media startup Swiftly raised $100 million, on top of $20 million raised since 2019. It’s an eye-popping number, despite no valuation, and will cheer other retail advertising startups that hope smaller chains can seize the […]

Mergers and acquisitions, the industry’s slow-motion pivot away from third-party data and the expansion of commerce-based business dominated the headlines for media and sell-side ad tech in 2021. What does the industry predict for 2022? More of the same as these trends continue to play out in the year ahead. First-party first In 2022 and […]

The Vox Media/Group Nine deal is only the most recent example of the consolidation trend in digital media. Publishers have been turning to M&A as a method to grow their audiences and increase their ad revenue, in addition to boosting their valuation for further deals down the road.