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This is the first installment of our 鈥淯K Ad Spending Benchmarks鈥� series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.鈥�

Criteo is modernizing retail media by launching a global auction-based ad platform and integrating with Mirakl to enable self-serve advertising for over 100,000 third-party sellers. This dual move addresses two persistent challenges: outdated fixed-price ad systems used by most retailers, and untapped ad spend from marketplace sellers. The auction system gives advertisers more control and performance insights, while Mirakl opens up a scalable, automated path for small sellers. Criteo also brings standardized attribution and reporting across retail partners鈥攆ixing transparency gaps. These changes position Criteo as a full-spectrum solution for brands, retailers, and sellers looking to compete in a fast-evolving market.

The news: Walmart鈥檚 $2.3 billion Vizio acquisition may have only closed last December, but the retailer is already unlocking outsize value from the deal. Our take: Walmart is squeezing every drop of value from its Vizio deal by fusing hardware, software, data, and retail media into a self-reinforcing flywheel. Making Vizio a Walmart-exclusive private label gives the retailer tighter control over pricing and distribution, while Vizio鈥檚 OS and shoppable-TV features unlock new streams of nonendemic ad revenues. By combining its in-house ad network with ONN TVs powered by Vizio software, Walmart is positioning itself to own the entire living-room stack鈥攆rom screen to checkout. The result is a powerful closed-loop media system that can rival Amazon鈥檚 Fire TV ecosystem. The retailer鈥檚 timing couldn鈥檛 be better: We expect retail media CTV ad spending to surge 47.4% this year to $4.84 billion, and to more than double to $10.72 billion by 2029.

The insight: Amazon鈥檚 decision to double the length of its Prime Day sale delivered significant rewards for its advertising business鈥攁s we said it would. The takeaway: The first four-day Prime Day was an important learning experience for brands. With the event unlikely to get any shorter, sellers will need to be more precise about their ad strategy鈥攆ocusing spending on times of day when shoppers are more likely to buy, or saving the bulk of their budgets for end-of-sale urgency.

The report: OpenAI is reportedly developing a checkout feature that would allow users to complete purchases directly within ChatGPT, according to The Financial Times. Merchants would pay OpenAI a commission on any resulting sales. Our take: At the risk of sounding hyperbolic, checkout integration could fundamentally transform the ecommerce landscape. Even before news of the feature began circulating, brands were exploring AI optimization, or 鈥淎IO鈥�, to rank in AI-generated product recommendations. Now, with purchases just a click away, ChatGPT could emerge as a viable commerce engine鈥攅specially if it undercuts incumbent marketplaces鈥� take rates. And it likely won鈥檛 be alone for long. Rivals like Perplexity and Anthropic are almost certain to build similar transactional layers, creating a new crop of marketplace-like platforms for sellers in short order.

Brands shouldn鈥檛 treat these ads like any other channel, but must rather adopt a careful and transparent approach that clearly communicates how sensitive data is used and protected.

By 2026, US spending on ecommerce channel ads鈥攁 large subset of retail media鈥攚ill be more than triple its 2020 level, per our forecast. Within the ecommerce channel, both search and display advertising are growing rapidly.

Real-world applications are already underway: Amazon鈥檚 Rufus ads blend product discovery with video in a seamless shopping flow, while Meta and TikTok aim to compress production timelines without sacrificing personalization. Despite the excitement, measurement gaps persist鈥攑articularly in closed-loop platforms like Rufus鈥攍eaving some advertisers flying blind on performance attribution.

Zooming in: All but one of the top 20 Rx brands increased YoY linear TV ad spending for the first six months of 2025, per iSpot. Novo Nordisk鈥檚 GLP-1 drug for weight loss Wegovy rang up $193.2 million in H1, boosting its linear TV ad spend by more than $150 million YoY. Johnson & Johnson鈥檚 anti-inflammatory biologic Tremfya dropped $119.2 million to promote its use for ulcerative colitis (UC).

Netflix could continue pushing into in-app e-commerce and shoppable features to give creators more opportunities to monetize content beyond platform payouts. Our take: YouTube鈥檚 appeal as a (mostly) free platform means it鈥檒l likely continue its dominance鈥攂ut all hope isn鈥檛 lost for Netflix, which continues to lead in paid streaming offerings.

This is the Q1 2025 installment of our quarterly 鈥淎d Spending Benchmarks鈥� series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.鈥�

This is the Q1 2025 installment of our quarterly 鈥淎d Spending Benchmarks鈥� series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.鈥�

This is the Q1 2025 installment of our quarterly 鈥淎d Spending Benchmarks鈥� series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.鈥�

This is the Q1 2025 installment of our quarterly 鈥淎d Spending Benchmarks鈥� series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.

As traditional in-app channels become pricier and more competitive, marketers are increasingly turning to new ways of reaching high-intent users. CTV, long seen as an awareness channel, is now emerging as a viable tool for direct response鈥攊f outcomes can be measured clearly. Our take: As performance pressures mount, advertisers are looking for alternatives to high-cost mobile media.

The news: Consumers increasingly see connected TV (CTV) ads as helpful during the holiday shopping season, according to LG Ad Solutions鈥� latest study. A growing number鈥�59%鈥攕ay CTV ads help guide holiday purchases, a 43% YoY spike. Home screen CTV ads are clicking鈥�26% of shoppers find them helpful for purchases, up 105% YoY. For advertisers, they鈥檙e fast becoming high-impact conversion tools amid rising ad loads. Our take: As holiday shopping habits extend into events like Prime Day and Cyber Monday, advertisers that align messaging, timing, and format across CTV platforms will win both attention and conversions.

Australia鈥檚 digital landscape is evolving fast, driven by shifting consumer behaviors, increasing ecommerce adoption, and changing media habits. Recent data reveals trends shaping digital spending, retail sales, and more.

Unlocking opportunities in open app ecosystems: As Epic positions its own store with direct payments and curated games, marketers will find fresh channels beyond Google Play and Apple鈥檚 App Store, with fewer platform fees and looser restrictions.

Retailers that aimed to be media giants are hitting headwinds as ad growth slows. To stay competitive, retail media networks must rethink org structure, sharpen media skills, and plan smartly to thrive in a more challenging landscape.

When YouTube is used as part of a wider ecommerce strategy, it performs well. A future where YouTube Shopping is a core consideration might not be far away. Sources. Business of Apps. Channel 4. Comscore. Influencer Marketing Hub. International Olympic Committee. Ofcom. Podnews. Semafor. Spotify. Streamcharts. YouTube. YPulse.

The news: Anime is gaining popularity across the globe, per a recent Dentsu report highlighting anime viewership trends, proving that marketers who haven鈥檛 yet paid attention to the medium need to tap in. 50% of Gen Z watches anime weekly, with 14% watching daily. Millennials also tune in frequently, with nearly half (48%) watching daily or weekly. Our take: Savvy marketers will pay attention to anime as a prime chance to reach the demographics driving the future鈥攂ut going beyond a surface-level understanding of the medium will determine which marketers succeed and which fall behind.

Advertisers should map churn cycles and diversify ad spend to align with viewing habits and consumer behavior while prioritizing media plans that follow content, not just platforms.

The news: Google is launching Offerwall, a new Ad Manager tool that lets users unlock publisher content through ads, surveys, or payments鈥攑art of a broader effort to mend relationships with publishers facing traffic loss from AI Overviews and eroding ad share. Publishers say Google pays less than rivals like PubMatic and Magnite, and AI-driven zero-click searches have dropped site traffic significantly. Our take: With a DOJ remedies trial looming and ChatGPT traffic rising fast, Google鈥檚 publisher outreach isn鈥檛 just damage control鈥攊t鈥檚 existential. If AI is to remain useful and ethical, supporting the content it鈥檚 trained on is a must.