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☆ European stocks set to open higher, reflecting wider optimism in global markets
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

European markets are heading for a positive start to trading Tuesday as traders look ahead to a busy day of earnings reports in the region. BP, S4 Capital, Siemens Healthineers, Deutsche Post, Infineon, Bouygues, UBS, Adecco, Banco de Sabadell and Unicredit are among the companies reporting earnings Tuesday. Overnight, U.S. stock futures flickered near the flatline Monday evening after the Dow Jones Industrial Average wrapped its fourth positive day in a row. Asia-Pacific markets climbed overnight, extending gains from the previous session and buoyed by gains on Wall Street.

Organizations: S4 Capital, Siemens Healthineers, Deutsche Post, Infineon, Bouygues, UBS, Adecco, Banco de Sabadell, Dow Jones Locations: Asia, Pacific

☆ Mark Penn's Stagwell Group is on the hunt for adtech as the ad company continues its acquisition spree
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Stagwell Group, the advertising agency holding group operated by Mark Penn, a former advisor to Bill and Hillary Clinton, is actively looking to buy adtech companies as it continues to grow through acquisitions. Penn's theory is that by bringing such adtech in-house, Stagwell can offer more self-service software to advertisers who want it while also shrinking those clients' ad prices and expanding its own margins. Challenger brand Stagwell is competing for bigger contractsPenn founded Stagwell Group in 2015 with $250 million in funding from investors, including former Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer. Stagwell recently made a near-$700-million bid for S4 Capital, another challenger ad company founded by longtime WPP CEO Martin Sorrell, The Wall Street Journal reported. Publicis Groupe has the biggest market capitalization of the largest holding companies, at $28.2 billion, while Stagwell is trading at around $1.6 billion.

Persons: Mark Penn, Bill, Hillary Clinton, Penn, we're, Stagwell, Penn didn't, Ana Milicevic, Milicevic, Brian Wieser, Wieser, Steve Ballmer, Sunny, GALE, Allison, Martin Sorrell, they're Organizations: Stagwell, Penn, Business, Google, Harris Poll, Next Partners, Sparrow, Madison, Challenger, Stagwell Group, Microsoft, MDC Partners, WPP, Publicis Groupe, Veritas, S4 Capital, Street Journal, S4, EMEA Locations: adtech, London

☆ Citi says this 'high risk' but 'attractive' global stock has 280% upside
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-11 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Citi has identified S4 Capital , a U.K.-headquartered digital advertising and marketing services company, as a high-risk but potentially attractive investment opportunity. Despite the company's recent struggles and a challenging short-term outlook, the Wall Street bank believes that S4 Capital's stock could see a significant upside of 280%, with a price target of 230 pence. Despite the cautious outlook, Citi analysts see potential for the business to rebound in the medium term. As a result, Citi said S4 Capital is a "Buy" rated stock with a "High Risk" designation and a price target of 230 pence. The stock has a consensus price target of £0.70, representing a potential upside of 14%.

Persons: Martin Sorrell, Thomas Singlehurst Organizations: Citi, Capital, Wall Locations: U.K, United States

☆ Check out the pitch deck that helped adtech identity company ID5 raise $20 million from investors including TransUnion and Martin Sorrell's S4S
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Adtech company ID5 said Tuesday it had raised $20 million in Series B investment. The ID5 identifier has been deployed by more than 66,000 publishers, per the metadata company Sincera. ID5 has now raised just over $27 million in funding to date, though the company declined to disclose its post-money valuation. New investors in this round included the credit reporting and data agency TransUnion and advertising veteran Martin Sorrell's venture capital firm S4S Ventures. Check out key slides from the pitch deck that helped ID5 raise $20 million in Series B funding.

Persons: ID5, Mathieu Roche, Martin Sorrell's, Sorrell, Matt Spiegel, Spiegel, Matt, Roche Organizations: Business, Data Protection, Publishers, Trade, S4S Ventures, Progress Ventures, Seventure Partners, Capital Partners, Aperiam Ventures

☆ Top ad guru Martin Sorrell downplays chances of Trump's Truth Social capturing serious market share
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Advertising guru Martin Sorrell has questioned the prospects of Donald Trump's newly public Truth Social platform, saying it was currently "unfathomable" that clients would want to buy ads on the site. Sorrell, founder and executive chairman of digital marketing firm S4 Capital, said when asked if clients were likely to advertise. Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), the company behind Truth Social, went public Tuesday after merging with shell company Digital World Acquisition in a deal known as a special purpose acquisition (SPAC). A spokesperson for TMTG firmly dismissed claims that the share price move defied logic when contacted by CNBC. Truth Social lost $10.6 million in the first nine months of 2023 on revenues of $3.4 million.

Persons: Martin Sorrell, Donald Trump's, Sorrell, ", TMTG, Semafor, Trump Organizations: CNBC, Trump Media & Technology, Truth, Associated Press, WPP, Twitter Locations: British, U.S

☆ Clients are cautious in the current macro environment: S4 Capital
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailClients are cautious in the current macro environment: S4 CapitalMartin Sorrell, chairman of S4 Capital, discusses a challenging macro environment and his market outlook.

Persons: Capital Martin Sorrell Organizations: Capital, S4

☆ 'The Davos underground': A final take on the secretive parties of the world's rich and powerful
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +23 min

"That's when you get the good s---," said a Davos attendee who is regularly selected to join the exclusive backroom of the Annual Davos Wine Forum Tasting. Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards JPMorgan took over the Kirchner Museum for its annual drinks event. Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards The attire of the Davos set is decidedly not chic. Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards The color of your conference badge determined access to World Economic Forum events. Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards Skiing and snowboarding post panels and broadcasting was another favorite pastime of some Davos goers.

Persons: bankrolled, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, George Soros, Bill Browder, Anthony Scaramucci, Anthony, Scaramucci, queued, Latour, Donald Trump, —, Mark Milley, Matt Damon, Richard Branson, Andrea Bocelli, Chris Coons, Paul Ryan, bartenders, Champagne Perrier, Chateau Latour, L'Eglise, Burgundy Olivier Bernstein Bonnes, Domaine Comte Georges de Vogue, Tenuta, Casanova di Neri, Stephen King, Browder, Doug Emhoff, Gary Cohn, Ian Bremmer, Sir Martin Sorrell, Sting, Bill Gates, Sam Altman, Marc Benioff, Ray Dalio, Emhoff, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Brian Moynihan, IBM's Gary Cohn, Jack Hidary, Sir Richard Moore, Barry Colson, Davos goer, Moritz, Eve, CNBCers, Emmanuel Macron, John Kerry, Joe Short, roundtables, Wyclef Jean, Diane von Fürstenberg, George Osborne, David Rhodes, Osborne, Politico's Suzanne Lynch, Princess Beatrice, David Blaine, Milley —, Tij, CNBC Tij Organizations: Economic, CNBC, Congress Center, Russian, Russian Direct Investment Fund, Moonshot Investor Network, Putin, Hermitage Capital, SkyBridge, White House Communications, Chiefs, Bordeaux Smith Haut, Platz, Politico, IBM, AB InBev, White, Trump, Eurasia Group, Capital, Microsoft, Wall Street, Billionaire Microsoft, Light, Infosys, Bloomberg House, JPMorgan, Kirchner Museum, Financial, Hotel, CNBC CNBC, Bank of America, New, Davos, U.S . Climate, Accenture, Golf Club Davos, Palantir, Chancellor, Sky News's, Sting, Workers, Swiss Army, Army, Gliding Locations: Davos, Switzerland, Soviet, Ukraine, Moscow, Hungarian, Hermitage, Providence, Europe, Davos's, Bordeaux, Bordeaux Smith Haut Lafitte, Bello, Santa Cruz, Napa Valley Tuscany, Schatzalp, Scalettastrasse, Emirates, Halifax, Canada, Salt Lake City, U.S, Palantir, Swiss

☆ It sure looks like Elon Musk is deliberately destroying X
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Jyoti Mann | Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Elon Musk seems to be trying to sabotage X by telling major advertisers "go fuck yourself." It gives weight to a theory that Musk may be deliberately trying to sink X, formerly Twitter. Those banks have since been trying to sell the debt — which looks increasingly worthless as Musk drives X into the ground. In the meantime, X and Musk must pay millions of dollars in interest to their financiers. "There is no way back, there is no way to reverse the statement Elon made yesterday," said Ruben Schreurs, chief strategy officer at the marketing consultancy Ebiquity, which works with major advertisers.

Persons: Elon Musk, Martin Sorrell, —, NBCUniversal, Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Linda, Jerod Harris, Matt Levine, Levine, Lou Paskalis, Musk's, Paskalis, BI's Grace Kay, Kali Hays, it's, Elon, Ruben Schreurs, Yaccarino, didn't Organizations: Service, The New York Times, Apple, Disney, IBM, Bloomberg, Bank of America, AJL, Musk's Twitter, Ebiquity, X

Social media’s antisemitism problemThe rise in antisemitism since the outbreak of war in the Middle East has ignited a clash between Wall Street donors and universities, and divided some workplaces. Now, the pressure is building on social media platforms, particularly Elon Musk’s X and TikTok, with advertisers, celebrities and influencers pulling spending and confronting executives about the proliferation of hate speech. He posted to X his support for white nationalist conspiracy theories that Jewish communities were spreading hatred. Yaccarino was brought in to win back advertisers after Musk bought Twitter last year and culled many content moderators. More than a dozen Jewish celebrities and creators, including the actors Sacha Baron Cohen, Debra Messing and Amy Schumer, confronted TikTok executives this week.

Persons: Elon Musk’s, Adolf Hitler, Musk, X’s, Linda Yaccarino, Yaccarino, “ Linda, ” Martin Sorrell, DealBook, TikTok, Sacha Baron Cohen, Debra Messing, Amy Schumer, “ Hitler, Anne Frank ”, Cohen, ”, Osama bin, bin Laden, —, Alex Haurek, George Santos, Biden, Xi Jinping, Doug McMillon, Walmart’s, “, ” Brian Cornell, ’ Organizations: IBM, Media, America, Nazi Party, Apple, Oracle, Defamation League, Twitter, S4 Capital, House, Big, General Motors, Hyundai, Republican, Justice Department, Business, APEC, West Texas Intermediate, Consumers, Depot, Walmart Locations: TikTok, New York, Hong Kong, China, San Francisco, Beijing, Washington, U.S

☆ Nvidia is targeting the ad industry as its next major chip-buying market
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Jamie Allan, Nvidia director of business development for global agencies and advertising. For Nvidia, the advertising industry unlocks access to a client base that includes virtually every single major corporation across every industry. Taboola is using Nvidia GPUs to speed up its natural language processing, which analyzes articles and serves relevant content to users. More recently, it's been using Nvidia and OpenAI technologies to allow advertisers to create images within its platform. Allan said Nvidia intends to be more involved in the advertising industry discourse and help advise companies about the adoption of AI.

Persons: Nvidia's Jamie Allan —, —, Allan, Jamie Allan, Microsoft's Bing, Stephan Pretorius, There's, Adam Singolda, it's, Media.Monks, Jay Pattisall, Forrester, Nvidia, Jensen Huang Organizations: Nvidia, Big Tech, Google, Meta, EMEA, WPP, DENZA, AWS, Adobe, Media.Monks, Oracle, Cannes Lions, pharma, they're

☆ Martin Sorrell’s S4 Capital Lowers Expectations, Citing ‘Challenging’ Macro Backdrop
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Megan Graham | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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Persons: Dow Jones

☆ S4 misery offers reality check on tech exuberance
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Sept 18 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Is the technology sector bouncing back? The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) is up 31% this year, and chip designer Arm enjoyed a 25% first-day pop on its listing. S4 on Monday downgraded its 2023 like-for-like net revenue growth forecast to “down on last year”. The news still sent S4 shares down 25% on Monday morning. Any recovery will require Sorrell to show he can keep winning business in an era of tech uncertainty.

Persons: Martin Sorrell, That’s, Publicis, Sorrell, Oliver Taslic, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Nasdaq, S4, Nvidia, Meta, X, Thomson

☆ Sorrell: There's fear of recession
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSorrell: There's fear of recessionMartin Sorrell, founder and executive chairman at S4 Capital, discusses earnings and explains why people are reluctant to commit to longer sales cycles in the current macroeconomic climate.

Persons: Sorrell, There's, Martin Sorrell Organizations: S4 Capital

The "AI for business" diploma offers training in data and AI for client leaders, practitioners, and WPP executives, according to WPP's website. The team work under AI expert Daniel Hulme who was appointed chief AI officer at WPP two years ago. While lawmakers and philosophers alike still debate whether content produced by generative AI models amounts to anything like human creativity, advertisers have already begun using the technology in their promotional campaigns. Unilever, which owns more than 400 brands including Dove soap and Ben & Jerry's ice cream, has its own generative AI technology that can write product descriptions for retailers' websites and digital commerce sites, it said. The company's TRESemmé haircare brand has used its AI content generator for written content and its automation tool for visual content on Amazon.co.uk (AMZN.O).

Persons: Mark Read, Read, we've, Mondelez, Shah Rukh Khan, Daniel Hulme, Nestle, Gandon, Ray, Johannes Vermeer's, Aaron Rajan, Nestle's Gandon, Martin Sorrell, You've, Ben King, Richa Naidu, Martin Coulter, Matt Scuffham, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Nestle, Unilever, Marketing, Investment, Reuters, WPP, Oreo, Cadbury, Bollywood, YouTube, Facebook, University of Oxford, Global, Google, Go, Market Technology, Consumer, Walmart, Carrefour, Kroger, Thomson Locations: Africa, India, London, Swiss, Okta

☆ The advertising winter may finally be starting to thaw
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The long advertising winter could be coming to an end in the second half of this year. There are tentative signs that the advertising winter is starting to thaw. Meta, which derives more than 98% of its revenue from advertising, reported revenue well ahead of analysts' estimates for the second quarter. To be sure, some pure-play advertising companies remain challenged. Indeed, on Thursday, the US Commerce Department said the US economy grew by 2.4% in the second quarter, which was up from 2% in the first quarter.

Persons: spenders, Kimberly, Clark, Brian Wieser, Groupe, IPG, Arthur Sadoun, It's, they're Organizations: Companies, Meta, Google, PepsiCo, Wall, Tech, Microsoft, US Commerce Department Locations: Madison

☆ Sorrell's ad group S4 lowers outlook over wary tech clients
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SummaryCompanies Co slashes FY revenue growth outlook to 2%-4%Says content business has been difficultShares down 20%July 24 (Reuters) - Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital (SFOR.L) cut its forecasts for annual revenue growth and core profit margin on Monday as tech clients dialled back marketing spend, sending the advertising group's shares down 20%. Last week, U.S.-based peers Interpublic (IPG.N) and Omnicom (OMC.N) also announced weak results that underscored the growing pressures on ad agencies. S4, founded by Sorrell after he left WPP (WPP.L), the world's largest ad group, said it now expects full-year like-for-like net revenue growth of between 2% and 4%, compared with an earlier forecast of 6%-10%. It expects an operational core profit margin of between 14.5% and 15.5%, down from 15%-16% forecast previously. In the first-half trading update, the company said revenue growth is expected to be about 5%, adding that performance in its content business has been more difficult.

Persons: Martin, Interpublic, Sorrell, Aby Jose Koilparambil, Eva Mathews, Dhanya Ann Thoppil, David Holmes Organizations: WPP, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

Has Zuckerberg invented a Twitter killer? Meta’s new social network had already racked up more than 10 million sign-ups within seven hours of its launch, and attracted celebrities and politicians like Oprah Winfrey and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York. But the presence of big-name advertisers such as Procter & Gamble and Ford points to the bigger commercial stakes in the fight between Mark Zuckerberg’s new platform and Elon Musk’s Twitter. Meta is billing Threads as a “friendly” forum, but the social media giant is gunning for the blue bird. Advertisers are watching closely, even if they can’t buy ads there yet.

Persons: Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey, Alexandria Ocasio, Ford, Mark Zuckerberg’s, gunning, ” Martin Sorrell, DealBook Organizations: Procter, Gamble, Elon, Twitter, Meta, S4 Capital Locations: Cortez, New York

☆ From right-wing backlash to Apple's TV play — these 3 big questions will dominate conversations at the Cannes Lions.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Lauren Johnson | Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

This year's Cannes Lions ad festival is taking place as advertisers are reeling from major shifts. The Cannes Lions organizers said that none of the three execs have been confirmed as speakers. Generative AI must boost creativity without stealing jobsThe rapid rise of generative AI took the advertising and media worlds by storm. Attendees will also have the opportunity to hobnob with the company that kicked off the generative AI storm last November. Simon Cook, Cannes Lions CEO, told Insider that top executives from ChatGPT developer OpenAI like chief operating officer Brad Lightcap will attend the festival.

Persons: Twitter's Elon Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Oliver Schusser, Michael Kassan, he's, execs, Bud Light, influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Bud, Busch, Fura, Leslie Klein, Sir Martin Sorrell, David Droga, Nick Law, Simon Cook, Brad Lightcap, Huge's, Elon Musk, Ben Hovaness, They've, Jon Williams, Akram Chetibi, Craig Atkinson Organizations: Cannes Lions, Apple, Twitter, Netflix, Hollywood, UTA, Target, Bud Light, Anheuser, Busch, Accenture, Cannes, Apple News, Carlton Hotel, Omnicom Media, Amazon Web Locations: Cannes

☆ The CEOs of the world's biggest advertising companies just outlined how AI is about to transform their businesses
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Advertising agency CEOs are eager to signal their companies' AI expertise to Wall Street. Speaking on this quarter's earnings calls, executives at the world's largest advertising agency groups also outlined some of their recent AI client projects and technology task forces. "What's changed over the last six months is the application of AI through generative AI into the creative process," Read said. Omnicom is running more than 20 projects where it combines Omnicom's historical data with GPT's automation technology, Wren said, though he didn't specify exactly how it was being deployed. That will require more creative assets, Sadoun said on the Publicis earnings call.

☆ 4.screen, a startup that enables retailers to advertise to drivers through in-car displays, just raised $23 million with this 11-slide pitch deck
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

4.screen, a startup that enables retailers to advertise through in-car displays, just raised $23 million. A startup that enables retailers to advertise to drivers on the road and in real-time through a vehicle's connected display has raised $23 million in fresh funds. In addition to in-car video ads, the startup also displays search highlights, branded map pins, and in-car offers. The startup uses car sensor data allows the startup to be as specific as possible with its suggestions. "We make sure the right content is shown to the right partner at the right time — you only see a gas station when your fuel is low," cofounder and CEO Fabian Beste told Insider.

☆ Digital ad platforms will probably grow by 7-8% in 2023, says S4 Capital CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailDigital ad platforms will probably grow by 7-8% in 2023, says S4 Capital CEOMartin Sorrell, CEO of S4 Capital, discusses the company's earnings and outlook.

☆ Sir Martin Sorrell: Google's ad market share position is eroding
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSir Martin Sorrell: Google's ad market share position is erodingSir Martin Sorrell, founder and executive chairman of digital marketing firm S4 Capital, joins 'Closing Bell' to discuss the litigation against Google over anti-competitive ad practices, Google's competitors in the digital ad space, and more.

☆ Ad mogul sees Meta rebounding 'extremely strongly,' Amazon ad revenue hitting $100 billion
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Advertising titan Martin Sorrell believes Meta will rebound "extremely strongly this year" and sees a promising outlook for U.S. tech giants, despite a bruising 2022 and mass layoffs. Facebook parent Meta in November announced plans to eliminate 13% of its staff, amounting to more than 11,000 employees. It also issued bleak fourth-quarter guidance that wiped out around a quarter of its market cap, pushing the stock to its lowest since 2016. The company has also taken a substantial hit from its massive investment in building its augmented reality world known as the metaverse — a strategy that has proven divisive among analysts and investors. Sorrell, executive chairman of U.K. advertising agency S4 Capital , expects Meta to address most of its business challenges in 2023, while benefiting from China's reopening.

☆ Sorrell: Meta will rebound 'extremely strongly,' Amazon ad revenue will hit $100 billion
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSorrell: Meta will rebound 'extremely strongly,' Amazon ad revenue will hit $100 billionMartin Sorrell, executive chairman of S4 Capital, discusses his optimistic outlook for U.S. tech giants despite a bruising 2022.

☆ Twitter's newest sales chief Chris Riedy is relocating from Dublin to San Francisco to try to revive its ailing ad business under Elon Musk
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Chris Riedy is the latest executive to lead ad sales at Elon Musk's Twitter. He is replacing Robin Wheeler, who was let go after she refused to fire more people from a depleted ad sales team. Riedy hosted an all-hands meeting with Musk for Twitter's sales staff on Sunday. Another week under Elon's ownership, another ad sales chief at Twitter. Bloomberg also earlier reported that Musk didn't discuss the impending sales team layoffs that followed the call.

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