Regulatory pressure and political alignment are now influencing programming stability, deal viability, and advertiser confidence one year into Trump's second presidency.

Regulatory crackdowns, digital dominance, and AI adoption forced marketers to rethink strategy, spend, and compliance across the year.

Affirm called for a cap on late fees in the buy now, pay later (BNPL) industry, per the Financial Times. BNPL platforms have an opportunity to gain customer loyalty through advertising—and practicing—transperant lending practices. Alternative lenders that operate with clear terms can get more consumers to select BNPL financing over revolving credit, especially when young consumers choose the payment method out of perceived safety over credit cards.

Meta is planning on offering UK users paid, ad-free versions of Instagram and Facebook in the coming weeks. Privacy transforming into a priced option implies a growing consumer awareness of data use. Advertisers who make privacy a positive part of their brand messaging will better match emerging consumer mindsets.

There are now more than 80 retail media networks (RMNs) in the US. The volume of RMNs, combined with the dominance of Amazon and other established competitors, makes it challenging for new and niche RMNs to capture share.

The technology will improve banks’ customer service and help them deliver more personalized interactions.

Financial regulators will undergo major agenda shifts and changes in leadership.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss what will happen if either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris win the US election and how that will affect inflation, high growth digital advertising channels, and regulatory priorities. Tune in to the discussion with Senior Director of Podcasts and host Marcus Johnson, Senior Director of Briefings Jeremy Goldman, and Senior Analyst Zak Stambor.

The Federal Trade Commision (FTC) released new guidelines for health-related products—everything from dietary supplements to food to devices. The guidelines encourage marketing that is “truthful, not misleading, and supported by science.” The updates emphasize a few main pillars.

TikTok’s downgrade to about $10 billion for 2022 puts revenue estimates more in line with our own, which have TikTok at $9.89 billion in ad revenues this year, up from $3.88 billion in 2021.

Shein’s expanding its US distribution centers in an effort to expand its American market. That’s good news for US customers, who currently wait up to 15 days for deliveries from the Chinese brand.

While advertisers have been scrambling to figure out what they’ll do when Google phases out third-party cookies, a larger threat has come into play: privacy regulations.

Smartphones will gain a few competitors in the next several years. As metaverse tools and wearables like virtual reality (VR) headsets become more commonplace, they will cause growth to slow for everyday devices like smartphones.

Read the latest stories from Insider Intelligence about artificial intelligence in social media.