On today's podcast episode, we discuss how the Apple monopoly trial could change the smartphone market, whether Aldi can take on Walmart, if gambling ads will get banned, the impact of Amazon's "Big Spring Sale," how seriously we should be taking drone delivery, where the happiest people in the world live, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst Blake Droesch and vice presidents of content Suzy Davidkhanian and Paul Verna.

In the third of five reports in our “Payments Ecosystem 2024” collection, we unpack how the lines between POS hardware and software are disappearing as providers push the innovation envelope.

Brands and marketers have an increasingly prominent presence at the annual technology, arts, and culture festival in Austin, Texas, which this year took place from March 8 to 16. We break down the key topics that drew the most attention from attendees.

Ecommerce growth accelerated during the 2023 holiday season as US consumers shifted more of their shopping to mobile devices.

South By Southwest was last week, and AI and VR were all the buzz. Gen Alpha is growing up with these technologies, which means the next generation of consumers will not just be used to AI and VR—they’ll expect to see it. Here are three takeaways from our analyst regarding tech trends at the event.

Last week, Apple made news for testing an AI-powered ad product similar to Google’s Performance Max. Apple has been successfully investing in advertising for the past few years. But Google has a multibillion dollar advertising advantage. Even with AI advertising improvements, Apple is nowhere near Google’s ad dominance.

Discover the dynamic shift toward digital wallets in the US and the UK in the latest podcast episode of "Behind the Numbers: The Banking & Payments Show." Delve into the compelling discourse on how younger generations' move to digital is rendering traditional wallets obsolete. Join host Rob Rubin, our US-based analyst Tyler Van Dyke, and UK-based analyst Carina Perkins as they unravel trends in digital transactions for dining, shopping, and ID verification. In the "For Argument's Sake" section, we dissect the fierce competition for market dominance among industry giants like Apple and Google, established players like PayPal, rising star Paze, and potential disruptors. Tune in for a forward-looking conversation and hit subscribe for the latest insights. Key insights: - Youth-led shift: Analysis reveals a robust trend among younger consumers pivoting to digital wallets for everyday activities, indicating a cultural and technological shift. - Market dominance debate: We uncover the strategic moves by tech titans and emergent challengers vying to capture the largest share of digital wallet users. - Cross-Atlantic perspectives: Insights from US and UK analysts present a diverse view on the adoption of digital wallets, offering a broader understanding of the global digital economy.

Big Tech (Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft) will attract nearly two-thirds of US digital ad dollars this year, according to our October 2023 forecast.

Every major streaming company—and some not so major ones—is investing in live sports. As they compete for broadcast rights, they’re seeking advertisers. Exclusive inventory is a draw, but benefits like first-party data and the ability to execute on lower-funnel objectives are also helping streamers woo live sports advertisers.

Apple tests AI-powered ad buying: Its tool focuses on App Store ads and allows advertisers to set budgets and cost per user before automatic placement.

Retailers need to take note—not having a customer’s preferred payment method can increase cart abandonment

Big Tech has a big problem: The regulatory tide has turned against it. Digital advertising giants face several major lawsuits, and competition authorities are working to launch more before a possible change in leadership following US elections.

Walmart makes a huge acquisition in hopes of taking on Amazon’s retail media dominance, while Amazon keeps churning out generative AI innovations. Plus, Target tries to steal share from Walmart’s prowess on attracting deal-seeking shoppers. Find out who else earned a spot in our Unofficial” Most Interesting Retailers List, a monthly ranking revealed on an episode of the “Behind the Numbers: Reimagining Retail” podcast.

TikTok’s ecommerce push could be driving down engagement: Users are steering clear of Shop posts as the platform struggles to clean up the marketplace experience.

The service may incentivize more shoppers to pay with the BNPL provider, and it may also bring Klarna key data benefits

This effort to appease EU regulators could shake up the mobile wallet landscape, but Apple Pay’s dominance shouldn’t waver

On today's podcast episode, we discuss how this year will look as Google's cookies fade away, the biggest threat to Google's search dominance, how many consumers are moving to ad-supported streaming, whether Apple can move the VR needle, Peloton's content hub on TikTok, the first person to ever complete Tetris, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our analysts Ross Benes, Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf, and Max Willens.

The ad spending winter of 2022 and early 2023 was mild and short-lived, as we predicted. And after a solid H2 2023, things are looking up across the board for 2024.

Fintechs, banks, and the government will reshuffle the payments deck in 2024. New features and competition will redefine the digital wallet user experience, and FedNow will pivot payment flows in new directions.

Until Google rolls out generative search to all users, most consumers won’t adopt the technology. That means AI isn’t driving search ad spending—yet.