Agency updates

AGM Proudly Partnered with Premier Sports Network for Olympic Celebration

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  We were thrilled to showcase AGM's exciting collaboration with Premier Sports Network at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. On August 8th, we hosted an unforgettable event at Team GB House, bringing influential figures from major sporting organizations together. Guests were treated to a day of Olympic excitement, featuring live sports coverage, exclusive on-stage interviews with Team GB athletes, and electrifying performances by the Team GB House band. The highlight of the event was the opportunity for guests to meet and mingle with both current and former Team GB Olympians, interacting with medal-winning cyclists Josie Knight, Dan Bingham, Ethan Vernon, and Charlie Tanfield, as well as 2012 Olympic 400m hurdler Perri Shakes-Drayton. This star-studded gathering exemplified the spirit of excellence and camaraderie that defines the Olympic Games.

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TL;DR

• Google violated trade laws by controlling nearly 90% of the US search market and spending $26B in 2021 on exclusive agreements, which will radically affect the future of search. (EMarketer)

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  TikTok has partnered with Warner Bros. to launch "Spotlight," a feature that transforms TikTok into a discovery engine for movies and TV shows, enabling users to access dedicated landing pages for viewing. (TechCrunch)

• Disney posted its first-ever streaming profit in fiscal Q3 2024, with revenues reaching $23.2B, but faces challenges with declining park revenues and streaming growth. (EMarketer)

• X (formerly Twitter) has filed an antitrust lawsuit against major advertising companies, alleging a coordinated boycott that impacted its ad revenue by 73% since Elon Musk’s acquisition. (Marketing Brew)

• 80% of US consumers state the economy has changed their shopping habits, with “spaving” becoming a growing trend as consumers are encouraged to spend more to save more. (Retail Brew)

Interesting campaigns / creative

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  Creative agency Leo Burnett Tailor Made introduced “kintsugi Oreos,” where broken cookies are mended with Oreo cream-flavored frosting, inspired by the Japanese art of kintsugi. (My Modern Met)

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  McDonald’s is leveraging nostalgia with new Collector’s Meals featuring past tie-ins like Barbie and Beanie Babies, enhanced with a Snapchat AR experience, to boost engagement amid declining sales. (Marketing Dive)

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  Channel 5 and Barclays have partnered on a new TV and social media campaign featuring Nick Knowles to educate viewers on money management. (Advanced Television)

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  Modelo Especial, now the No. 1 beer brand in America, has become the biggest TV advertiser in the beer category, spending $65M on TV ads in 2024 driven by its “Mark of a Fighter” campaign. (Marketing Brew)

Audiences

• HBO’s “House of the Dragon” topped the streaming charts for the first time with 1.27B minutes viewed on Max from July 8-14, 2024. (The Hollywood Reporter)

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  A recent survey found that 70% of U.S. adults believe regular options are just as good as luxury ones, with quality being the primary attribute that defines luxury across travel, food and retail products. (Morning Consult)

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  Smart TVs are increasingly shaping viewing habits, with 60% of primary TVs now connected to streaming platforms, up from 40% in 2020, while traditional cable connections have dropped to 38%. (Advanced Television)

• Facebook’s Gen Z user base in the US is expected to grow from 49.0% in 2024 to 56.9% in 2028, while TikTok is seeing significant adoption among baby boomers, with 1M new users expected in the next year. (EMarketer)

Platforms

• Outbrain is acquiring Teads for $1B, forming a major advertising platform that leverages Teads’ digital video and CTV expertise to enhance performance marketing and reach over 2B consumers monthly. (Marketing Dive)

• TikTok could soon have its own, in-stream text-to-video creation tool, called “Jimeng AI” in China, which enables users to create short videos via AI, based on written prompts. (Social Media Today)

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  Instagram plans to enhance user privacy by blocking screenshots of temporary DMs in “Vanish Mode” and “View Once” settings, providing more security for sensitive content. (Social Media Today)

• YouTube’s Q2 ad revenues rose 13% YoY to $8.7B, but the impact of Shorts, aimed at targeting Instagram Reels and TikTok, remains unclear in terms of growing ad revenue. (EMarketer)

• Netflix’s ad-tier in the UK grew to 15% of its user base as of June 2024, driven by standalone subscribers, contrasting with the US where ad-tier users often have multiple SVoD services. (Advanced Television)

Content

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  Nearly 90% of the English Premier League’s sponsorship revenue comes from international brands, highlighting its strong global appeal and ability to attract multinational investment. (Advanced Television)

• Since the Hollywood strikes, American viewers have significantly increased their consumption of British content on Netflix and Prime Video, with a 40% rise in viewing hours between Q2 2023 and Q1 2024. (Deadline)

• US influencer marketing spend on TikTok is projected to reach $1.4B in 2024, as TikTok’s top brands succeed by partnering with creators who genuinely align with their brand, fostering authentic connections to drive engagement and purchases. (EMarketer)

• The Paris Olympics are seeing a significant increase in commercial sponsorship revenue, making the games more reliant on sponsors’ cash than ever before. (DigiDay)

• OneFootball and the German Football Association (DFB) have partnered to launch DFB Play, an OTT sports platform offering live and on-demand football content, enhancing global accessibility for fans. (Advanced Television)

Tech & AI

• Meta’s AI vision involves automating creative generation and personalizing ads in real time, aiming to handle entire advertising processes. (Marketing Dive)

• Reddit will test AI-powered search result pages later this year, leveraging partnerships with OpenAI and Google to feature AI-generated summaries to help users discover content. (TechCrunch)

• Despite Google's change of plans on Chrome cookies, marketers need to develop cookieless strategies and compliance with evolving privacy laws, as over 80% of US browsers could be cookieless long term. (EMarketer)

• AI technologies are revolutionizing live sports broadcasting by enhancing visual effects, providing real-time metrics, and overlaying player statistics, making the viewing experience more immersive and engaging for fans. (Advanced Television)

• Google has introduced the Google TV Streamer, replacing Chromecast, with features like access to over 700K movies and shows, 800+ free live TV channels, AI-curated content suggestions, and smart home integration. (Advanced Television)

• Apple’s new Safari feature, Distraction Control, which hides pop-ups and website clutter, signals to advertisers the need to rethink their ad formats. (AdAge)

Location-based entertainment

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  Flight Club launched in Sydney by transforming the city into a ‘dart gallery,’ resulting in a 706.25% increase in organic search and a 2296.3% increase in direct channel traffic. (Campaign Brief)

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  Hallmark is launching the Hallmark Christmas Experience in Kansas City for the 2024 holiday season, featuring nightly Christmas tree lightings, photo ops, and events with Hallmark stars. (Attractions Magazine)

• Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” has become the biggest tour in the history of popular music, grossing over $1B in less than a year and potentially approaching $2B by its conclusion. (Variety)

• James Dolan’s company plans to spend $80M to adapt “The Wizard of Oz” into an 80-minute immersive experience at the Sphere in Las Vegas. (Indiewire)

• Mars Wrigley’s 5 Gum and Zedd are hosting a secret rave in a New York City bodega on August 22, with the first 25 fans who decipher social media clues gaining entry with a glow-in-the-dark 5 Gum x Zedd pack as their ticket. (Marketing Dive)

Travel & hospitality

• The cruise industry is experiencing a resurgence, driven by Millennials and Gen Z, who now make up half of Royal Caribbean’s passengers, leading to a decrease in the average age of cruise-goers for two consecutive years. (Bloomberg)

• Gen Z’s shift towards sobriety is driving the growth of the non-alcoholic beverage industry, with sales reaching $565M in 2023, a 35% increase from 2022. (Fortune)

• Airbnb plans to introduce new services in 2024, allowing users to hire chefs, cleaners, and masseurs during their stays. (Bloomberg)

• Demographic growth, government support, improved connectivity and the expansion of niche segments are fueling India's outbound travel boom, from an estimated $18.8B in 2024 to over $55.3B by 2034. (Economic Times)

• New York City has removed about 75% of its pandemic-era outdoor dining structures, as only 3K out of over 12K restaurants and bars applied to the new Dining Out NYC program by the deadline. (Nation's Restaurant News)

Gaming

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  Warner Bros. has launched a first-of-its-kind activation on Roblox, allowing users to purchase real-world tickets for “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” through a virtual Fandango box office, connecting gaming and commerce. (Marketing Dive)

• Meta has shut down Ready at Dawn, a 20-year-old game studio that had a close partnership with Sony and known for “The Order: 1886” and the “Lone Echo” series, following major layoffs and the discontinuation of Echo VR. (IGN)

• Skybound predicts that the current trend of successful video game adaptations into movies and TV shows could last for five to ten years, driven by improved storytelling in games and advancements in film and TV production technology. (Gamesindustry.biz)

• South Korea's HYBE’s video game division, HYBE IM, secured an $80M investment to enhance its publishing and development capabilities, led by Makers Fund. (pocketgamer.biz)

Mental health

• Need help on a project? Here are 5 tips on how to ask for help from a position of strength. (Harvard Business Review)

• How to live a longer, healthier life - a SuperAger shares her secrets. (Healthline)