The 10 things in advertising you need to know today

pulse

March 20, 2017 9:27 AM

Havas denies stopping Google ad spend in the UK, Facebook's secret projects team, and WPP's Sir Martin Sorrell on the YouTube ad boycott.

Chairman and CEO of Havas Yannick Bollore.

Good morning. Here's everything you need to know in the world of advertising today.

1. French ad group Havas denied it was stopping Google ad spend. The denial from the group's chairman, Yannick Bollore, came after a report published Friday which claimed it was stopping all its spend on Google in the UK.

2. Facebook has a secret projects team. The division is working on at least four unannounced consumer hardware products.

3. YouTube's CEO praised Netflix for what it's doing in gender diversity. Susan Wojcicki said Netflix CEO Reed Hastings' strong stand on family leave lead to a knock-on effect in other tech companies.

4. WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell spoke out on the YouTube ad boycott. The head of the biggest ad agency in the world said the advertiser boycotts reinforced his view that Google needs to take on the responsibility of a media company.

5. M&C Saatchi's head said Brexit had no effect on business. David Kershaw reported an 18% surge in profits and is predicting strong growth for the creative agency in 2017, according to Campaign.

6. The ANA is urging the seven biggest ad platforms to open themselves to independent auditing. The American trade body asked Amazon, Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Foursquare to allow independent auditing from the Media Ratings Council, as reported by Ad Week.

7. BSSP resigned the BMW Mini account after 11 years. The creative agency said it was becoming difficult to manage the business profitably, according to Ad Age.

8. HSBC, Lloyds, and RBS stopped their ad spend on Google. The three major banks pulled their advertising amid revelations ads were appearing next to extremist content, as reported by The Drum.

9. Apple paid $500,000 for a two week exclusive on Chance the Rapper's album. It's the first revelation of how much Apple is prepared to pay for exclusivity on new albums.

10. Burger King was named creative marketer of the year. The Cannes Lions festival crowned the fast food chain for "embracing and encouraging creativity" across its communications, according to Ad Age.

pulse