The news: Tech company Hewlett Packard (HP) is reportedly pitching HP Media Network, an ad network focused on laptop-targeted ads and desktop streaming, per Adweek. HP Media Network will sell ads that show up on HP computers and apps, and will promote its first-party data to give adtech firms access to offsite ads. Our take: HP’s launch could capitalize on growth in the desktop and laptop ad market—but the company needs to prove its offerings as distinctly beneficial compared with competitors, or risk falling victim to advertisers’ concerns over investing in new offerings as budgets are slashed.
Netflix's Q2 2025 earnings results came in at $11.1 billion in total revenues. The company’s shift away from reporting net subscriber growth now places investor focus squarely on margins, ad performance, and global monetization. While churn remains low and its brand strong, Netflix faces growing competition from YouTube and TikTok for user screen time. With hit content, live sports, and gaming on deck, the streaming giant’s next act will test its ability to monetize an already massive user base while retaining cultural dominance. For Netflix, growth now means doing more with what it already has.
The news: Substack is exploring a larger shift from a newsletter-first platform to a more expansive media ecosystem—one that could include ads and a social media identity. The company is doubling down on the Substack app and aiming to show that social media “can be fun and rewarding without melting your brain,” the company stated in a blog post. Our take: As AI search engines downgrade publisher content, Substack could become an important channel for brands to reach loyal and engaged young audiences. Marketers should research creators to find authentic voices that align with brand messaging, craft company newsletters to get onto user feeds, and be prepared with market analysis if and when Substack launches ad placements.
The news: Circle K owner Alimentation Couche-Tard has dropped its bid to buy Japan’s Seven & i Holdings, casting doubt on whether the 7-Eleven operator’s planned US IPO will proceed, Bloomberg reported. Our take: As 7-Eleven continues efforts to strengthen its core business, the failed takeover bid offers lessons for retailers and brands. Decisions involving globally recognized brands should be strategic, not reactive. Retailers must maintain flexibility to revisit IPO or spin-off plans as business circumstances change.
The trend: Budget pressures, increased GLP-1 drug adoption, evolving government policies, and a growing preference for healthy eating are reshaping consumer grocery habits—forcing CPG giants like PepsiCo to rethink their businesses in order to remain competitive. Our take: The food industry is in a state of flux, with companies frantically adjusting their portfolios to accommodate shifts in eating and drinking behaviors. Speed is of the essence—brands must adapt to consumer demand for high-protein products and simplified labels.
The news: Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb will launch a direct-to-patient channel to sell their blockbuster blood thinner Eliquis at a reduced cash-pay price. Our take: Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb have anticipated the Eliquis patent loss and sales drop for years as part of the typical branded drug cycle. We see the new direct sales platform launch not as a play for new revenues, but rather a negotiating nod to the Trump administration. Only 10% of Eliquis patients are uncovered by insurance, so it’s a small market to court as a revenue-driving ploy. However, Trump has made it clear he’s open to using any levers possible to force lower drug prices, pushing pharma companies to offer good faith options and concessions.
The news:. A new report reviewed by STAT reveals that Pfizer and Eli Lilly pay their telehealth provider partners upwards of a few million dollars. Our take: Drugmakers in the D2C telehealth market likely won’t be too worried about the report’s findings. It will be difficult for regulators to prove that a pharma company’s payment to a telehealth partner is directly tied to prescription volume. Drug brands will need to boost awareness of their D2C offerings to justify the price they pay telehealth firms, however.
The news: Connecticut plans to ask the federal government to allow it to contract for generic GLP-1 drugs for state employees and Medicaid patients. Our take: While other HHS secretaries have resisted trying to use Section 1498, RFK Jr. has shown a willingness to challenge established precedent. Even if RFK doesn’t respond to Connecticut’s plea, the broad enthusiasm for workarounds to lower GLP-1 costs—the Connecticut law sponsor said both red and blue state officials have reached out—could be a negotiating tool with drugmakers.
The trend: Physicians are ramping up use of AI for pharma-related queries on medications, treatments, and drug interactions. But usage of AI trails search, according to a new Bain & Company. report. The big takeaway: Doctors trust search engines over AI for drug information—for now. The convergence of the two tools via AI Overviews on Google could lead to declining confidence in search results. The winner in securing physician trust could be clinical-specific AI tools like the widely used UptoDate or the emerging OpenEvidence, which brands itself as a ChatGPT for doctors.
The news: TikTok launched a beta suite of Songwriter Features, designed to credit and showcase the creators behind hit songs. Songwriters can now tag their profiles, curate music in a dedicated tab, and share the stories behind their work within TikTok’s music discovery ecosystem.
The news: Roblox rolled out new teen-focused safety tools, including age estimation, stricter communication filters, and parent insights. The shift to ramp up age-specific protections follows growing pressure from regulators and parents over child safety risks on the platform, per Fast Company. Our take: Using Roblox’s new rules as a blueprint, marketers looking to cater to younger audiences should build campaigns that align with verified connections, invest in brand-safe messaging, and prepare for an age-gated future across platforms as this becomes the norm. Adapting early ensures compliance and preserves access to a key Gen Z and Gen Alpha audience.
Only 28% of US luxury consumers felt optimistic about the economy in April 2025, down from 41% in January 2025 and 45% in April 2024, according to data from Saks.
PubMatic has launched an AI-powered Live Sports Marketplace to enhance the value of live sports advertising by placing programmatic ads at high-engagement moments. The platform uses real-time signals—from viewer behavior to game dynamics—to time ads for maximum impact. With partners including FanServ, Roku, and major leagues like the NBA and MLB, the marketplace consolidates fragmented inventory across platforms. As digital sports viewership overtakes linear, and programmatic CTV spending continues to rise, PubMatic’s innovation offers flexibility, scale, and precision in a format where timing is everything. Advertisers gain tools to optimize performance at the moment audiences are most engaged.
The news: Meta is experimenting with letting users sign up for Threads through Facebook, potentially attracting older users and further separating Threads’ identity from Instagram. Our take: Combining data from Facebook and Threads will give advertisers deeper insights and opportunities to optimize campaigns. Marketers can use this to tailor platform-specific campaigns or create unified cross-platform content to better resonate across demographics.
Privacy regulations are mounting. Signal loss is accelerating. Omnichannel advertising has become impossibly complex. These forces are driving marketers back to MMM for holistic, privacy-safe measurement.
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 “AIO”, to rank in AI-generated product recommendations. Now, with purchases just a click away, ChatGPT could emerge as a viable commerce engine—especially if it undercuts incumbent marketplaces’ take rates. And it likely won’t 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.
The news: Cash App Business sellers now have access to Tap to Pay on iPhone through the Cash App iOS app, per a press release. Our take: Block has been pushing into contactless payments for both Cash App and Square Handheld. Cash App microbusinesses now have the room to grow through Block’s offerings as their business matures.
The news: Walmart introduced a private label for tweens, Weekend Academy, just in time for the back-to-school shopping season. Our take: As Target proved, retailers that use their private labels to deliver on-trend products at affordable prices can win big with shoppers. While Walmart hasn’t always been known as a destination for stylish products, its growing investments in its store brands could help it capitalize on Target’s fading “Tarzhay” magic and become a go-to for value- and design-conscious shoppers.
The news: Linear TV—already struggling amid the rise of digital—is at risk as US leaders across parties push for a crackdown on the multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical ad market. Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is pursuing policies that would require advertisers to disclose drug side effects more transparently or risk losing the ability to deduct ad spending from their taxes, per Bloomberg. Our take: Restrictions on pharma advertising would isolate linear TV from omnichannel budgets and put it at a greater disadvantage against more data-rich platforms, accelerating the shift to digital.