The Media Leader Podcast

Yannick Bolloré, CEO and chairman of Vivendi and Havas, talks to editor-in-chief Omar Oakes about the future of media, how Vivendi can compete on a global scale, what's the grand strategy behind the company's acquisitions and where Havas' new ad agency Uncommon fits in.Speaking at our recent The Future of Media conference in London, Bolloré also answered questions about greenwashing and working for Shell as a new client and how the company has a policy around sustainability and making sure advertisers adhere to policies.With thanks to audience questions from columnist Nick Manning, Liberty Sky Advisors' Ian Whittaker, and Pixability MD Cadi Jones.Read a write-up of the conversation by reporter Ella Sagar here.---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderX: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

Host Jack Benjamin and is joined by reporter Ella Sagar and editor-in-chief Omar Oakes to discuss this quarter's Rajar figures and how podcasts are not just an audio format anymore. So if podcasts aren't just audio, why are we still calling them "podcasts," asked Oakes.The trio also talks about the latest earnings results for Spotify, Netflix, and the major media agency holding companies, as well as argue why advertising on streaming video platforms like Netflix and YouTube makes for such a bad user experience.Read Oakes' latest column: "Let's ditch 'Podcast' and other messy media labels"Show highlights:1:27: Rajar run down5:52: Time to ditch the ‘podcast’ label15:22: Short form long form and midform: the future of ‘content’22:04: Rapid fire… Spotify earnings24:37: Why video is leading digital adspend growth27:28: Why IPG earnings are lagging rival agency groups29:26: Can Netflix they keep raising prices?34:29: Meta sued over mental health concerns38:35: What’s is the TML team working on next?---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderX: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

"The Duracell bunny" of advertising — that’s how ITV describes peak time TV spots, because, they say, their benefit keeps going and going.ITV and media investment analysts ViewersLogic have published a cross-market study that proves the value of peak airtime of responsive advertising. They say that peak TV spots deliver direct responses in the short term, but their hidden value is in their longevity, generating responses long after other TV spots advertising have finished working.To explain why and how, Omar Oakes is joined by Neil Charles, the Measurement and Modelling senior manager at ITV, and Ronny Golan, the CEO and cofounder of ViewersLogic."When it comes to TV, I do think that going beyond the five-minute, 10-minute attribution that shows that daytime really works, and understanding the actual effect over a week, a month, three months will enable brands to also change the mix within their TV advertising," said Golan.---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

Digital ad platform Teads has in recent years expanded its footprint beyond its digital display roots into connected TV. And, like many digital players, it is looking to leverage AI and machine-learning tools to the benefit of clients.Teads co-CEO Jeremy Arditi caught up with host Jack Benjamin to talk about how AI is powering creative solutions while being capable of respecting user privacy.Speaking from Advertising Week New York, Arditi explained: “It might feel like, to a user, that they're seeing ads that are much more personalised, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the machine needs to know a whole lot of specific attributes, and private attributes, of that user."Arditi also discussed how moving into CTV has been "organic and natural" for Teads, despite some challenges.Read the full write-up of the interview on The Media Leader.---This episode was edited by our production partner Trisonic.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

Host Jack Benjamin is joined by reporter Ella Sagar and editor-in-chief Omar Oakes to unpack the key takeaways from last week's The Future of Media and The Future of Gaming events in London.The trio also discuss how the Israel-Hamas war has caused trouble for social media companies and the BBC alike.Read Raymond Snoddy's latest column: "BBC’s rigidity over ‘the T word’ is damaging its reputation"Show highlights:1.58 Key takeaways from The Future of Media - how can we measure the full "impact" of media?5:15 Retail media: so much discussion but was it all "hot air"?12:25 The Future of Gaming: key takeaways 24:41 BBC impartiality in Israel-Palestine coverage34:53 Misinformation and propaganda on social media46:05 WPP merges ad agencies VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson — do agency brands still matter? Plus The Guardian's new advertising council , TikTok moving into OOH and cinema, and Netflix's expansion into brick-and-mortar retail.---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

Ahead of the online video giant's YouTube Festival event to woo UK advertisers this week, Kevin Allocca tells editor-in-chief Omar Oakes why being 'viral' is less important and how the rise of TikTok and changing attitudes to online video have impacted YouTube's strategy.Allocca and Oakes also discuss why YouTube's research claims more than half of YouTube viewers are happy to watch ads attached to content of favourite creators in order to support them, and why 42% of viewers in the UK say that YouTube enables them to find the exact content they like at any moment.Kevin Allocca is global director of Culture & Trends at YouTube, where he tracks popular video phenomena and manages trending content initiatives. He is also the author of Videocracy, an exploration of YouTube's most interesting trends and the impact of video in our culture.---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

Over the past year, The Media Leader has been championing three key issues facing the media industry: declining trust in media, sustainability, and the talent crisis.Those issues have frequently been discussed in this podcast and our coverage this year. At last October’s The Future of Media conference, we held a debate on what we should champion and those were the topics chosen by the audience.And in just a few days at The Future of Media this year, it's time to debate the most important aspects of media and advertising to zero in on for progress in 2024. To preview this year's event in London, columnist and media agency founder Nick Manning joins Jack Benjamin and Omar Oakes to unpack the key issues facing the media industry.The trio discuss whether progress has been made in the past year on trust, sustainability, and talent, and Nick makes his case for why he believes effectiveness is at the core of all issues facing media.“I have a long-held belief that the only solution to the lack of trust in the media ecosystem from a client point of view is in proper effectiveness measurement; that requires absolute transparency," he said.The group also takes a look at the latest drama at GB News, the forthcoming Telegraph sale, and what now for ads on Netflix with the exit of commercial boss Jeremi Gorman. ---This episode was edited by our production partner Trisonic.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

Editor-in-chief Omar Oakes and reporters Jack Benjamin and Ella Sagar preview the Future of Media in London on 11-12 October. The trio look ahead to the big event and discuss some of the biggest stories from around the industry.The key players in The Telegraph sale: Jack lists who has thrown their hat in the ring for The Telegraph, and why Sir Paul Marshall in particular may have a tough time juggling a bid while fending off Ofcom investigations at GB News.Read Raymond Snoddy: "The future of Ofcom and the future of The Telegraph are at stake"SEC's crackdown on Clear Channel: Ella talks about the recent charges filed by the US Securities Exchange Commission against outdoor company Clear Channel, why they occurred and what it means for the company.Commercial radio's big anniversary: A series of interviews written by Ella take a look at the state of the commercial radio industry and how far it's come since the very first broadcast in 1973. She discusses some key takeaways from her discussions with News UK and Global.Brainlabs taking on the world: Jack, who interviewed Brainlabs's global CEO Daniel Gilbert, talks about his vision for the future of the agency following a major new investment from Falfurrias Capital Partners.Plus: The trio talk about what they're most looking forward to at The Future of Media and The Future of Gaming next week, and reveal why they're so passionate about media.Omar's column: Why passion is the best litmus test

This summer, climate change-caused unseasonal weather events continued to devastate huge areas of the world, and yet, earlier this month the UK Government diluted its 2030 net zero commitments. As the climate crisis gets worse, it is more important than ever to ask what a sustainable media and advertising ecosystem looks like.Anne Coghlan, the chief operating officer and co-founder of carbon emissions data specialist Scope3, and Hannah Mirza, the founder of The Responsible Marketing Agency, join Ella Sagar to unpack the state of sustainability efforts, media's immediate climate goals, and the ethics of advertising for fossil fuel companies."Purely looking at the supply chain of the execution of advertising, I think there's more opportunity to get to net zero faster," said Mirza. "I'd love to see that."---This episode was edited by our production partner Trisonic.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader

After months of it being an open secret that Facebook was looking to reduce its emphasis on news, parent company Meta announced this month it would be “deprecating” news on the platform in the UK, France, and Germany beginning in December.While publishers likely saw this coming, it is just the latest bit of news in what has been a challenging year for the digital publishing industry.Ozone CEO Damon Reeve joins Jack Benjamin to discuss the state of news publishing and how publishers are navigating a pivot away from relying on social media for audience growth and toward building up their own brands, as well as how advertisers can help support a transitioning industry.The pair also speak about consumers' waning trust in news, advertisers' trust in publishers, and how outlets are working to diversify their revenue."If brands took an active interest in knowing where their advertising spend goes, very quickly you would see that spend gravitate towards places that are trusted and safe," said Reeve.---This episode was edited by our production partner Trisonic.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderThreads: @TheMediaLeaderTwitter: @TheMediaLeader YouTube: The Media Leader