BuzzFeed has created a commerce site for its lifestyle brand, Goodful, while Time has launched a platform for product recommendations and reviews. TikTok’s Pulse Premiere program offers publishers 50% of ad revenues and a brand safety guarantee.

Disney says AI could make QR-code shoppable marketing obsolete: At a TV advertising event, Disney and YouTube shared how AI has already changed their strategies.

Google put ads in its Search Generative Experience. YouTube has a new unskippable 30-second ad spot. HBO Max relaunched as Max. And The Kroger Co. is paving the way with in-store retail media. Here are what updates from these companies and more mean for advertisers.

YouTube is positioned to be an advertising powerhouse. It’s one of the original digital video players, courting advertisers at a time when connected TV advertising is climbing. The platform’s Google ties offer it a more trustworthy reputation in the US than TikTok. And use is already extremely high. But YouTube’s high standing also makes growth difficult. Here are five charts summarizing YouTube’s position and potential.

Despite financial troubles among some esports and gaming video platforms, ad revenues will continue to grow for both media.

On today's episode, we discuss which attention metrics are real, which are still in development, and where identity and addressability will be by the end of the year. "In Other News," we talk about how much Microsoft and Apple can encroach on Google's search turf and YouTube debuting unskippable 30-second ads. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst Evelyn Mitchell and Kunal Nagpal, chief business officer of InMobi.

On today's episode, we discuss whether the most watched program in the US (the NFL) has a looming viewership problem, Disney+ and Hulu joining forces, whether the free returns party is over, ride-hailing apps giving mixed messages, YouTube viewership on TV screens, the best-selling video games in history, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our forecasting writer Ethan Cramer-Flood and analysts Ross Benes and Paul Verna.

One-fourth of creators said they go live to their followers via YouTube, making it the most popular livestreaming app ahead of TikTok (18.7%), Facebook (17.4%), and Instagram (14.0%), per an April 2023 survey by The Influencer Marketing Factory.

The 2023 upfront market will likely be the last one transacted primarily on Nielsen’s legacy currency. A shift from traditional TV to digital video advertising is the main factor driving this change.

This year’s upfronts have been unusual, with the haze of the Writers Guild of America strike and a decisive shift toward streaming. From YouTube’s mixed messages to Netflix’s ad-supported tier’s less-than-impressive beginning, here are five trends pinpointed by our analyst.

The grand final of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Liverpool, UK, on May 13. Attracting a Super Bowl-sized audience, tourists, and viewing parties, the competition’s global reach will provide marketers and retailers with a notable opportunity to drive brand awareness and sales.

Microsoft’s new Bing has had a persistent hold over headlines. Combine this with a third consecutive quarter of ad loss for YouTube and the picture for Google may look less than rosy. But the company remains in good shape, with overall earnings beating expectations. It remains dominant in search, and YouTube use is still remarkably high. Here’s a closer look.

YouTube is no longer separate from the streaming wars: Almost half of its viewership is on TVs, and advertisers are spending heavily on the platform.

The battle against TikTok took center stage at this week’s NewFronts, as Meta, Snapchat, and YouTube unveiled new ad products tied to short-form video. While none of them can compete with TikTok’s lock on the youth market or the enormous amount of time its users spend on the app, these new ad products are an attempt to bring Reels, Spotlight, and Shorts into greater parity with TikTok’s ad formats.

TikTok is going all-in on in-app purchases; Meta is focused on shoppable ads; and YouTube hopes to gain a competitive advantage through its strong creator relationships. All of this is happening as we forecast US retail social commerce sales will grow nearly 30% this year to hit $68.92 billion

Ad spending is looking shaky for many of the legacy formats across digital and traditional. New channels have arrived, however, and there are bright spots. This year could be rough, but 2024 is looking better.

Mobile and video formats will be key to a recovering ad market in the years ahead.

US marketers will spend over $1 billion more on influencer marketing in 2023 than they did last year, per our forecast. We lay out six tactics to maximize the impact of those dollars.