Brave, a privacy-focused web browser built by a Mozilla co-founder and the creator of JavaScript, Brendan Eich, has filed privacy complaints against Google in what could become a GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) “test case” against ad tech data use.

According to a report by Reuters, Brave - which blocks ads by default in place of its own - has filed privacy...

Creating personalised shopping experiences has long been a priority for retailers.

‘Personalisation’ started out as the in-store sales assistant who could instantly infer basic information about their customers – gender, age, etc – as well as learn about their preferences and offer them advice throughout the browsing and buying journey.

As customers complemented – or replaced – in-store with online experiences, retailers sought ways to replicate this one-to-one approach,...

Nearly two-thirds (65%) of marketing organisations plan to up their spend on martech in the next year while just 5% intend to curb it, according to Walker Sands State of Martech Report 2018.

Right now, though, they’re struggling to keep up.

According to the report, based on responses from 300 marketers of varying company size, level and experience, martech certainly doesn’t suffer from a lack of interest of...

In the early days of digital advertising, hopes were high that the industry was entering a new era of accountability. And, for a while, it did. When everyone used one browser and one device, tracking tools such as the cookie functioned as a viable approximation of individuals that powered accurate measurement and attribution.

However, times have changed.  

Not only do consumers make their activity harder to trace by using multiple connected devices — at least three per...

Less than two-thirds (61%) of banner ads were considered viewable in Europe last quarter.

The technical criteria for an ad being viewable is being at least 50% within the visible area of a browser for at least one second, and yet 39% of banners failed to meet this standard across the continent.

The findings from ad verification company Meetrics suggest three things; advertisers need to produce better creative, ad exchanges need to acquire better inventory, and that marketers are wasting a lot of money.

But while the study gives support...

With consumer data now considered the fundamental bedrock of digital advertising and minds sharpened by the recent introduction of GDPR, you’d think marketers would have a firm grasp on where responsibility for it sits within their organisations. Wouldn’t you?

In fact, while the majority of marketers consider data use a “very important” aspect of business growth, there seems to be an ongoing conflict when it comes to who should be in charge of it.

A study by the global association for...

By 2020, customer experience is expected to overtake both price and product as a key brand differentiator. A 280-character Twitter post, Instagram snap or Facebook update from a disgruntled consumer can destroy a brand’s long-built reputation and performance in an instant, so brands must deliver a consistent, connected, competitive customer experience. Those businesses that get this right are rewarded: 68% of UK consumers in a

Despite the Cambridge Analytica scandal, a new study has revealed that consumers are much more likely to entrust their personally identifiable information (PII) to Facebook and Google than smaller ad tech firms.

Based on a study using replica websites featuring various opt-in request types on over 1,200 adults, the findings from Smartpipe and PSB Research found that consumers were more likely to opt-in to their data being used by big names.

In every scenario, the ‘duopoly’ came out on top, gaining...

Google has delayed its entry into a consortium of ad tech companies, hampering the group’s efforts to comply with the new European law for data privacy.

The information was reported to Reuters by sources involved in the programme.

The search giant’s decision to join in August will have left some firms that use its advertising services, particularly “unwitting owners” of ad-funded websites and apps, exposed to fines.

Hundreds of ad tech companies came together to build consent...

Interpublic Group (IPG) has confirmed the acquisition of the data-driven marketing arm of Acxiom Corporation in a deal worth $2.3 billion (£1.7 billion).

The cash deal for the Acxiom Marketing Solutions (AMS) unit has been “approved unanimously” by both company’s boards of directors.

With the transaction expected to complete by the end of the year, AMS will become part of the IPG’s media agency network MediaBrands, while the acquisition will not include Acxiom Corporation’s