The news: Meta announced numerous updates to its messaging ad options, with a heavy focus on WhatsApp. Meta is expanding Ads Manager to include WhatsApp campaigns, centralizing multi-campaign management across its platforms. The feature allows businesses to upload subscriber lists to use Advantage+ to optimize ad budgets or manually choose messages for additional placements. Our take: The ongoing potential for divestiture could have significant implications for advertisers that rely on Meta’s ecosystem—but the new features will still make WhatsApp a more appealing option for those that haven’t considered it as a key ad channel.

The news: The FTC has conditionally approved Omnicom’s $13.5 billion acquisition of IPG, but with a historic behavioral restriction: the merged ad giant is barred from coordinating ad placements based on political or ideological content. This addresses rising concerns over informal industry efforts to blacklist partisan publishers, especially those on the right. Our take: The ruling sends a clear warning that media buying behavior is under federal scrutiny. While brands can still control where their ads appear, holding companies must now walk a tighter line. The age of unregulated middlemen in ad placement may be ending.

The news: The pending Omnicom Group and Interpublic Group merger is facing a new hurdle, per a New York Times report. The Federal Trade Commission is reportedly considering adding restrictions on Omnicom and IPG that would stop the merger unless the new company agrees to a ban on ad boycotts that would prevent it from refusing to host clients’ advertisements on platforms because of political reasons. Our take: If the FTC proceeds, the decision will have a ripple effect on the advertising industry as a whole, emphasizing that advertisers are increasingly faced with choosing between brand safety and legal pushback.

The news: With scams on the rise, advertisers and brands need to be thoughtful with their communications to keep it out of junk folders. 96% of US adults get at least one scam email, phone call, or text message each week, per CNET. Our take: To stop volume fatigue, brands should avoid inundating users’ phones and inboxes with constant messaging. Social media could offer a less-saturated space where short-form content can exemplify brand personality and where users are more likely to expect engagement.

FTC investigates ad groups, watchdogs over alleged boycott: Advertisers must navigate a landscape where protecting brand image could carry legal risks.

Meta's antitrust trial over Instagram and WhatsApp deals winds down: But the trial’s outcome could reshape tech M&A for years to come.

By snapping up staff and software without a full buyout, Google may have found a gray zone. Regulators want to know if it’s a loophole or a land grab.

With always-on AI, Meta’s next smart glasses could normalize surveillance as convenience—especially in a lax US regulatory climate.

Meta defends past acquisitions in FTC trial: The case could force Instagram and WhatsApp divestitures, disrupting ad buying and reshaping tech merger norms.

An EU tax on Meta could mean higher ad prices: The EU may take retaliatory measures against Trump’s tariffs that could shake up the advertising world.

The FTC’s challenge to Meta’s deals could fracture the social media giant's empire and signals that no acquisition, no matter its age, is safe from antitrust scrutiny.

Uncertainty is having a chilling effect on US M&A activity: The number—and size—of deals is down YoY as companies wait for more clarity on government policy.

Apple faces lawsuit over false advertising for delayed iPhone 16 features: The case echoes concerns over the impact that deceptive advertising can have on brands.

Online reviews are vital to the shopping experience, but a growing wariness of fake reviews and AI's escalation of the problem has recently spurred governments to act.

The Blackberry-esque device offers an e-ink display and physical keyboard but faces delays and a lack of FCC approval.

Retail mergers get the go-ahead: A judge cleared Tempur Sealy’s $4 billion Mattress Firm acquisition, setting the stage for a more permissive FTC.

OpenAI can use other cloud providers, but Microsoft retains API exclusivity through 2030—suggesting it may be offloading some costs while keeping strategic advantages.

Sanofi’s Opella secures FDA nod to pursue OTC Cialis study: If Cialis’ shift from a prescription drug to over-the-counter product comes to fruition, both consumers and D2C retailers could benefit.

Lina Khan’s FTC sued Pepsi in final bid to shape antitrust enforcement: But that Hail Mary pass will likely fall short amid pushback from her successor.

The FTC restricts use of minors’ data: The rule requires two instances of parental consent to collect data, but it may not survive the next administration.