57% of ad buyers will prioritize creator ads in 2026—but success will be driven by repeat partnerships with genuine brand advocates.

YouTube is pulling close on reach, but traditional TV still delivers stronger engagement. As viewing shifts across screens, marketers face a growing tradeoff between scale and attention, and they must rethink how YouTube and TV fit together in video plans.

Netflix's spending overshadowed its Q4 results; it beat expectations, but investor focus has shifted to the execution and regulatory risk of the Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition.

Newsletters are becoming creator power centers; onfluencers owning their audiences is reshaping how they monetize—and how brands leverage those audiences.

Podcast listeners are sought out by marketers for high engagement, and listenership is only set to grow.

Discord is preparing for its IPO; its youthful, highly engaged communities signal rising advertiser interest in participatory platforms as alternatives to feed-driven social media.

Disney will fully fold Hulu content into Disney+ by 2026, transforming Disney+ into a broader streaming portal spanning family programming, general entertainment, news, and sports. Hulu’s brand will remain intact inside the app, but its slowing revenue trajectory—expected to reach nearly $12 billion by 2027—has accelerated the logic for consolidation. The strategy becomes more important as Netflix pursues its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, potentially creating the most powerful premium-content library in streaming. Disney must keep viewers inside its ecosystem longer, reduce churn, and strengthen its ad-supported tiers. Success depends on balancing Hulu’s adult content with Disney+’s family identity while expanding perceived value.

Email’s reliability is no longer enough to offset rising consumer expectations. AI accelerates production and enhances relevance, while engagement, trust, and tougher inbox rules push marketers to rethink how they will use the channel in 2026.

On today’s podcast episode, we discuss airline passengers’ receptiveness to ads, share best-in-class examples of contextual campaigns, and explore where in-flight ads are headed next. Join Senior Director of Podcasts and host Marcus Johnson, Senior Director of Content Jeremy Goldman, and Ragu Kamakshisundaram, Vice President of Media and Monetization at Viasat Ads. Listen everywhere, and watch on YouTube and Spotify.

Q3 was a record-breaking quarter for the three largest ad platforms, but heavy spending on AI is compressing margins and raising questions about how the technology will impact the future of digital advertising.

The race to succeed Twitter is maturing into a two-lane race. Meta’s Threads has surged to 150 million daily active users, per Meta, while decentralized rival Bluesky has climbed to 40 million users, per TechCrunch. The post-Twitter world is segmenting. Threads offers scale and a burgeoning ad ecosystem, but Bluesky might be better for more organic brand engagement with specific user groups. For brands, the opportunity lies in balance: Use Threads for audience growth and measurable performance and Bluesky to test tone, voice, and authenticity. Together, they offer a preview of where digital conversation and brand storytelling are headed next.

Influencer marketing is no longer optional—it’s a performance-driven growth engine. As consumer trust and expectations reshape engagement, brands must adapt their strategies to sustain returns in a fast-moving yet maturing channel.

Video is now core to B2B marketing. This report shows how trust-building through creators, as well as increased AI use, are supporting video’s rise—and how to link performance to pipeline despite rising costs and resource gaps.

B2B digital ad spending is rising as marketers lean into formats that build visibility and engagement. Video and display are growing faster than search, reshaping strategies to reach decision-makers.

Disney is raising streaming prices again; Disney+ ad-free will climb to $18.99 per month, Hulu’s ad tier will rise to $11.99, and bundles will increase by up to $3. The hikes follow similar moves by Apple TV+ and Peacock, as subscription inflation outpaces consumer budgets. Nearly half of US adults have altered streaming subscriptions in the past six months, with two-thirds of cancellations tied to high costs. Disney can point to premium franchises, ESPN, and bundles as value, but modest daily engagement gains make retention a tougher challenge in a saturated market.

Tariffs and inflation are reshaping retail, pushing shoppers toward value and convenience. Off-price chains gained ground, while housing-linked retailers sought new growth paths in a slowing market.

B2B marketing data spending is rising as marketers prioritize strategies that improve ROI, enable AI, and fuel pipeline growth. Trusted data sources and integrated tools are helping teams optimize segmentation, compliance, and campaign performance.

Efficiency, ROI, and AI integration are now driving B2B martech buying decisions. Marketers are consolidating stacks, prioritizing automation, and investing in tools that deliver measurable performance gains.

AI-fueled gains kept Google, Meta, and Amazon atop Q2’s ad market, but slowing engagement, murky ROI, and macro risks leave the triopoly’s future growth story more complex than the headlines suggest.

The strategy: In 2023, U.S. Bank launched a nontraditional campaign to promote Asistente Inteligente, its bilingual Spanish voice assistant that debuted the prior year. The bank co-produced “Translators,” a documentary highlighting the challenges faced by millions of children who act as translators for their immigrant families, particularly in financial matters, per Storyboard 18. Our take: This campaign was a masterclass in purpose-driven marketing that doubles as a long-term business strategy. Many financial institutions (FIs) often overlook or superficially address underbanked and immigrant populations. But the GDP of US Latinos is the second-fastest-growing in the world, next to that of consumers in China, per think tank Latino Donor Collaborative. And 25% of US consumers ages 18 and under are part of the Latino community—offering smaller FIs an opportunity to combat their “age problem.”