Advertising & Retail Media

How ecommerce advertising is bought, measured and monetized, including retail media, paid search, social ads, ad technology, attribution and marketing measurement.

Oct 15, 2026

Google adds softer ad budget controls

New channel priorities offer more choice, while soft limits and a future migration leave advertisers with decisions.

Oct 15, 2026

Prebid wants Google's buyers without Google's ad server

A proposed auction reversal could loosen publisher dependence, but Google's choice of connection remains decisive.

Oct 14, 2026

Walmart takes shopper audiences to Spotify and TV

US Spotify access, selected television deals and a Yahoo alpha expand advertising beyond Walmart’s screens.

Oct 14, 2026

Meta reportedly restricts TikTok-linked ads in seven markets

Third-party paid messages may be affected when their destination is a ByteDance service; detailed enforcement rules remain unverified.

Oct 14, 2026

Safari’s early ad losses vary by publisher

Aditude reports lower earnings on upgraded traffic, while other publishers see little change.

Oct 14, 2026

Google's blurry product photos can keep showing

The low-image-quality warning eases, while mandatory image rules and the January size deadline remain.

Oct 13, 2026

THG puts sponsored products inside AI shopping chats

Labelled Criteo recommendations add ad inventory to THG's retailer assistant; early performance claims lack disclosed test methods.

Oct 13, 2026

Facebook promised a $10 fee after a sale. Why did another screen show $400 a day?

One Marketplace ad test showed conflicting prices and settings. It did not establish that the seller was charged $400.

Oct 12, 2026

AI Advertising Still Belongs To Search

US forecasts favour search placements while conversations capture most new dollars and complicate retail budgets

Oct 12, 2026

Commerce Media’s New Money Squeeze

US spending keeps growing, but shrinking annual additions make new advertising inventory harder to fund.

Oct 12, 2026

Walmart's Stable Margins Hide A Transition

Ecommerce grew faster than retail while quarterly profitability arrived late, complicating the advertising scorecard.

Oct 9, 2026

Grocery Screens Build Their Audience Early

One campaign reaches most viewers halfway through, making weekly audience growth a buying question

Oct 6, 2026

OpenAI plans visual ads beside ChatGPT image generation

An initial US test is due later in October, with labeled ads separate from generated images and expanded measurement support.

Sep 30, 2026

Amazon puts sponsored prompts inside shopping chats

Branded Conversations brings paid product guidance into AI shopping, with limits on what brands can control.

Sep 30, 2026

eBay widens access to Custom Store ads

Eligible Store sellers can choose featured products and themed destinations for paid clicks.

Sep 28, 2026

Amazon Opens DSP Console in Five More Markets

Self-service campaign creation reaches Belgium, Poland, Singapore, Egypt and South Africa, with prior access in four markets still unclear.

Sep 24, 2026

Citi Turns Card Spending Into a New Advertising Channel

The U.S. platform links purchase insights, ads and sales measurement while the Kard acquisition remains pending.

Sep 23, 2026

McDonald’s Tests Selling Ads While Customers Wait for Food

A limited US pilot turns post-order menu screens into advertising inventory, with nationwide scale and returns still unproven.

Sep 22, 2026

Digital Now Owns Brand Discovery

Discovery is digital; social, search and websites shape brand choice long before checkout.

Sep 21, 2026

Infillion Adds Foursquare To Its Store Measurement Bet

The proposed acquisition links visits with purchase data, but matching quality and access terms will decide its value.

Sep 19, 2026

Walmart turns signals into action

Scintilla is moving from supplier reporting toward AI-guided decisions across inventory, media and store execution.

Sep 17, 2026

Shopping Ad Click Rates Hide Shrinking Reach

Rising click rates can mask fewer impressions, while the role of AI remains unproven.

Sep 15, 2026

OpenAI turns ad clicks into branded chats

Sponsored Agents keep the first sales conversation inside ChatGPT, testing whether lower landing-page friction is worth less retailer control.

Sep 15, 2026

South Africa Gives Retail Media Returns a Common Ruler

A proposed measurement framework makes attribution windows, sales bases and modelling assumptions travel with every reported result

Sep 11, 2026

Google Ads Starts Outside the Account

Performance Max rewards stronger offers, cleaner product data and trustworthy conversion signals before settings

Advertising & Retail Media

Google adds softer ad budget controls

Prebid wants Google's buyers without Google's ad server

Walmart takes shopper audiences to Spotify and TV

Meta reportedly restricts TikTok-linked ads in seven markets

Safari’s early ad losses vary by publisher

Google's blurry product photos can keep showing

THG puts sponsored products inside AI shopping chats

Facebook promised a $10 fee after a sale. Why did another screen show $400 a day?

AI Advertising Still Belongs To Search

Commerce Media’s New Money Squeeze

Walmart's Stable Margins Hide A Transition

Grocery Screens Build Their Audience Early

OpenAI plans visual ads beside ChatGPT image generation

Amazon puts sponsored prompts inside shopping chats

eBay widens access to Custom Store ads

Amazon Opens DSP Console in Five More Markets

Citi Turns Card Spending Into a New Advertising Channel

McDonald’s Tests Selling Ads While Customers Wait for Food

Digital Now Owns Brand Discovery

Infillion Adds Foursquare To Its Store Measurement Bet

Walmart turns signals into action

Shopping Ad Click Rates Hide Shrinking Reach

OpenAI turns ad clicks into branded chats

South Africa Gives Retail Media Returns a Common Ruler

Google Ads Starts Outside the Account

Your smart, no-nonsense guide to the maze of e-commerce

Join 1,000+ other readers and get ecommerce & marketplace insights, Monday–Friday.
Always data-driven, always stunning in under five minutes.

MarketMaze

Advertising & Retail Media

Google adds softer ad budget controls

Prebid wants Google's buyers without Google's ad server

Walmart takes shopper audiences to Spotify and TV

Meta reportedly restricts TikTok-linked ads in seven markets

Safari’s early ad losses vary by publisher

Google's blurry product photos can keep showing

THG puts sponsored products inside AI shopping chats

Facebook promised a $10 fee after a sale. Why did another screen show $400 a day?

AI Advertising Still Belongs To Search

Commerce Media’s New Money Squeeze

Walmart's Stable Margins Hide A Transition

Grocery Screens Build Their Audience Early

OpenAI plans visual ads beside ChatGPT image generation

Amazon puts sponsored prompts inside shopping chats

eBay widens access to Custom Store ads

Amazon Opens DSP Console in Five More Markets

Citi Turns Card Spending Into a New Advertising Channel

McDonald’s Tests Selling Ads While Customers Wait for Food

Digital Now Owns Brand Discovery

Infillion Adds Foursquare To Its Store Measurement Bet

Walmart turns signals into action

Shopping Ad Click Rates Hide Shrinking Reach

OpenAI turns ad clicks into branded chats

South Africa Gives Retail Media Returns a Common Ruler

Google Ads Starts Outside the Account

Your smart, no-nonsense guide to the maze of e-commerce

Join 1,000+ other readers and get ecommerce & marketplace insights, Monday–Friday.Always data-driven, always stunning in under five minutes.

MarketMaze

Join 1,000+ other readers and get ecommerce & marketplace insights, Monday–Friday.
Always data-driven, always stunning in under five minutes.