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But cookies aside – and don’t forget to leave a few real ones out for Santa – there were lots of other big privacy developments in 2024. Here are some of the highlights.

Enjoy this weekly comic strip from AdExchanger.com that highlights the digital advertising ecosystem … 

A class-action lawsuit takes Office Depot to task for deceptive pricing and ads; YouTube is taking over TV, but brands may be missing out; and advertisers weigh in on which marketing trends are worth the hype.

Antitrust regulation has counterintuitively favored the biggest ad industry players. Plus, another streaming service, anyone?

Ad industry growth will slow to single-digits next year; consolidation hits the CPG market; and predicting the future of the FTC based on a commissioner’s pitch to the president-elect.

When talk turns to the most impactful state privacy laws, the conversation usually starts and stops with California. However, recent developments may make Maryland the most challenging state for compliance by the digital media industry.

Mediaocean has a new certified partner program. Plus, Google’s “site reputation abuse” search update is cratering publisher affiliate revenue during the year’s busiest shopping season.

Nikki Bhargava, a partner at law firm Reed Smith, spoke with AdExchanger about knowns – and unknowns – on the privacy as we gear up for the next four years.

The odds of RFK Jr. implementing a ban on TV drug ads are slim, says our guest this week, BranchLab’s Josh Walsh. Still, pharma advertisers could face other regulatory changes over the next four years. Plus: We break down Forrester’s picks for the top 10 SSPs.

Why the agency pivot to alternative payment models is good for M&A; Zeta Global responds to a short-seller’s explosive claims; and X sees a mass exodus after the election.

The deal is a “platform investment,” in which Inverness Graham sees Alliant as a foundation to build on, potentially through further acquisitions.

Adelaide may become the first vendor to receive accreditation for an attention metric. Plus, the IAB is leading a lawsuit against the FTC.

A tool popular with law enforcement can track devices to sensitive locations. Plus, black boxes are getting a bit more transparent.

Nobody likes social media bots… but what about users who act like bots? Plus, even telling someone to go vote might get your content flagged.

A web crime ring that sold Facebook account service tickets collapses in dramatic fashion; how US antitrust precedent could inform the DOJ/Google ad tech trial; and more publishers turn to paywalls as the open web shuts its gates.

Let’s clear the air. The Federal Trade Commission does not hate advertising, says Samuel Levine, the agency’s consumer protection chief. But the FTC does have a few suggestions for the ad industry.

The FTC’s got a new report on the data collection practices of large social media and video platforms. Plus, Amazon has its own “Shark Tank.”

It might be surprising to learn the government fights against monopolies the same way now as it did in the late 19th century – partly because the laws haven’t needed to change all that much.

Publishers are in the business of selling their readers’ attention to advertisers. But in response to consumer preferences and regulatory pressure, publishers should reposition themselves as champions of data dignity.

The decision by WFA leadership to succumb to Elon Musk’s pressure is disappointing and dangerous – but it presents an opportunity to rethink our industry’s broken approach to brand safety, writes Arielle Garcia.

ChannelMix is InMarket’s fifth deal within as many years.

In today’s newsletter: The DOJ sues TikTok alleging COPPA violations; Disney wraps a competitive upfronts season as it faces stiller competition for streaming ad budgets; and more than $107 million was spent on ads for AI products in the first half of this year.

The FTC is ordering data from eight companies, which Commissioner Lina Khan describes as part of a “shadowy ecosystem of pricing middlemen,” in pursuit of visibility into “surveillance pricing.”

Ad tech faces a GDPR compliance paradox. Plus, TikTok will make it harder to target teenagers and plans to give users more control.

Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here. BeReal Gets Real French photo-sharing app BeReal was a sensation in 2021 and 2022. But even when its organic growth was through the roof, the app – which is free to use and has no ads – faced the question of how it would eventually […]

In today’s newsletter: How the Amazon-TripleLift deal illustrates retail media’s need for standardization; legacy publishing brands persist as investors extract value from their name recognition; and mortgage lenders get caught sharing data with Meta.

In today’s newsletter: The CMA still has a bone to pick with the Chrome Privacy Sandbox; the FCC fines mobile carriers for selling customer location data to data brokers; and the Financial Times is the latest publisher to strike a licensing deal with an AI company.

Moonbug Entertainment, a content studio whose portfolio includes kid favorites such as CoComelon and Blippi, is trying to bring some form of ad measurement to children’s content through a new partnership with iSpot.

In today’s newsletter: The FTC finalizes order barring Outlogic from selling location data; even Snap is sending publishers less referral traffic; Chase Bank’s advertising (and ad tech) opportunities.

In today’s newsletter: The quantum entanglements of Google’s and Reddit’s contracts could come under scrutiny; Meta’s ad revenue growth is healthy, though its ad platform’s a mess; and TikTok’s developing AI-generated creators for advertising.