• The Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. is reportedly demanding ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok sell off its Chinese ownership or face a possible national ban, representing the Biden administration’s sharpest action yet against the video-sharing platform. In a statement, TikTok spokeswoman Brooke Oberwetter said “divestment doesn’t solve the problem” of national security, as a change in ownership would not result in new data flow guidelines or protections. (The Wall Street Journal) 
• T-Mobile USA Inc. announced it will buy Ka’ena Corp.’s Mint Mobile, a budget wireless carrier partially owned by actor Ryan Reynolds, for $1.35 billion as it looks to expand its prepaid phone offerings. Reynolds, who frequently appears in Mint’s advertising campaigns, plans to continue serving the brand in a creative capacity after the deal closes later this year. (The Verge) 
• Paramount Global launched its first-ever unified e-commerce storefront on Wednesday, bringing merchandise for its more than 125 content brands into one shopping destination. It marks a major pivot from the company’s previous direct-to-consumer strategy, which included a slew of show-specific sites and a scattered presence in retail stores. (The Hollywood Reporter) 
• The Kellogg Co. unveiled Kellanova as the name of the snacking unit that will launch later this year when the food giant splits into two companies. Kellanova will house brands like Pringles and Cheez-Its, while Kellogg’s cereal products will remain in a separate unit called WK Kellogg Co. (CNBC)

Business Roundtable survey: CEOs’ rising optimism 

Axios

Facebook’s behavioral ads lacked legal basis, Dutch court rules

Natasha Lomas, TechCrunch

In the latest blow to Meta’s consentless behavioral ad-targeting business in Europe, a Dutch court has found the social media giant’s Irish subsidiary did not have a lawful basis to process local users’ data for ad targeting.

VaynerMedia Expands Its Canadian Footprint With Full-Service Office In Toronto

Steve McClellan, MediaPost

After a five-year presence in Canada servicing the Mondelez media business, VaynerMedia is expanding its footprint there with a full-service operation in Toronto that includes creative, strategy, and media. 

Why regulators’ scrutiny of Big Tech is rekindling buyers’ interest in ad tech 

Ronan Shields, Digiday

Last year was a muted one for ad tech exits compared to the rampant activity of 2021, when the pop of champagne corks abounded with deal volume driven by initial public offerings plus mergers and acquisitions. Investment bank LUMA Partners’ 2022 Market Report shows the number of deals in the sector almost halved — from 90 to 56. Albeit, the wider digital media and marketing category actually increased by 2%, from 400 in 2021 to 406 in 2022.

General Mills and Kimebrly-Clark Launch Media Reviews in Potential Blow to Mindshare

Brian Bonilla, Ad Age 

Reviews follow the sudden departure of Amanda Richman as Mindshare’s North America CEO.

Newsletters Are An Emerging Ad Opportunity, But Monetization Can Be Challenging

Allison Schiff, AdExchanger

Times are tough and tight for web publishers. But times are even tougher for small, independent newsletter writers.

Pinterest’s quiet battle for ad dollars is getting louder

Krystal Scanlon, Digiday

The platform hoped advertisers would see it as a safe place for their dollars. And there are some early signs that its persistence is starting to pay off. 

Diamond expects to lose some MLB rights after bankruptcy

Tim Baysinger, Axios

As the largest owner of RSNs, what happens with Diamond could trigger a domino effect for the rest of the industry.

The New Prime Time for TV News: Afternoons

Michael M. Grynbaum, The New York Times

The biggest draw on Fox News is no longer Tucker Carlson or Sean Hannity; it’s “The Five.” And daytime shows on CNN and MSNBC are outranking evening programming.

BuzzFeed Encourages Reporters to Write More Stories in Attempt to Turn Profit

Alexandra Bruell, The Wall Street Journal

BuzzFeed News Editor in Chief Karolina Waclawiak told staff at a recent meeting that increasing the news division’s volume and traffic was part of an effort to help the newsroom meet a goal of becoming profitable this year. 

NBA Wants Billions More in Sports Deals: Media and Tech Firms Are Resistant

Sahill Patel, The Information

The NBA is one of the most popular sports leagues in the world. It also has high hopes for squeezing far more money out of media outlets in negotiations for future TV broadcast rights, in part because tech giants including Amazon and Google have told the league of their interest in streaming the games. According to two people who have recently spoken with the NBA, the league wants to triple its current revenue from TV deals.

Vince McMahon included in new WWE game

Herb Scibner, Axios

WWE chairman Vince McMahon is a playable character in the latest WWE 2K23 video game, despite controversies that have largely kept him out of the public eye.

Disney chief debates future of Hulu and ESPN

Anna Nicolaou and Christopher Grimes, Financial Times 

Since Bob Iger’s second term as Disney chief executive started in November, some of America’s most prominent media executives have offered him advice on how to turn the world’s largest entertainment group round.

Vice Media’s New Co-CEOs Vow to Stay the Course

Mark Stenberg, Adweek

The two aim to shepherd the company—and its brand equity—through its sale.

Snapchat makes its content guidelines public

Sara Fischer, Axios

To date, only vetted publishing partners and professional creators on the platform have had access to the guidelines. Now, Snapchat is making them public to give parents more assurance about what their teens see on the app.

LinkedIn expands its generative AI assistant to recruitment ads and writing profiles

Ingrid Lunden, TechCrunch

The company is today introducing AI-powered writing suggestions, which will initially be offered to people to spruce up their LinkedIn profiles, and to recruiters writing job descriptions.  

Inside TikTok’s Battle for Brands and Why Some Agencies Feel Left Out

Garret Sloane, Ad Age

The hot social app is striking some deals directly with advertisers—sidestepping agencies.

Quora’s Poe is launching subscriptions to let you chat with GPT-4 powered bot

Ivan Mehta, TechCrunch

Poe subscriptions will set you back $19.99 per month or $199.99 per year, and you can only buy it at the moment from your iOS or Apple Silicon-powered Mac. The company is working on making the paid plan available to purchase on the web.

Retail sales drop in February after consumer spending surge

Courtenay Brown, Axios

Shoppers spent less at furniture stores, restaurants and elsewhere, as retail sales fell 0.4% in February, according to data released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday. The figures are not adjusted for inflation.

Coors Light helps calm anxious basketball fans with beer-flavored ice pops

Sara Karlovitch, Marketing Dive

The Molson Coors brand launched the first round of products, with additional inventory added each week until March 24. Consumers can buy a six-pack of the non-alcoholic pops for $20 online, and the treats will also be stocked at 800 bars. Fans can also enter a sweepstakes for the chance to win one of 100 free six-packs.

McDonald’s Hires Chipotle Exec to Lead Restaurant Openings

Ally Marotti, Ad Age

The new senior VP and chief development officer will help with McDonald’s accelerated restaurant opening plan in the U.S.

ESPN, Pizza Hut engage second screens in a play for younger audiences during March Madness

Julian Cannon, Digiday

Brands like ESPN, Pizza Hut, Great Clips and Continental Tire, among others, are focusing on March Madness to boost awareness and connect with college basketball fans wherever they are spending time — either watching the game or on social media following players. Marketing experts say brands can reach a younger audience during this period through a multi-screen experience, like social media.

Albertsons, Kroger reiterate store divestiture plan ahead of merger

Reuters

Albertsons Companies Inc reiterated in a filing on Tuesday it would divest some stores owned by the company and Kroger Co to obtain the regulatory clearance needed to go ahead with the merger of the two firms.

A running list for major US companies’ return-to-office mandates in 2023

Jo Constantz, Bloomberg

Some executives have tried to rebrand the effort to get people to show up in person, emphasizing continued commitments to virtues like flexibility while sounding familiar notes around the office’s centrality to “creativity,” “collaboration” and “culture.” Meanwhile, speculation has arisen about other reasons executives want workers back in person, like keeping corporate tax breaks.

Golf at 3 p.m. Thursday? Sure, It’s the Afternoon Fun Economy.

Emma Goldberg, The New York Times

Remote workers have fueled a surge in weekday exercise, cosmetics and leisure — especially at the driving range.

Welcome to the Comfy Office of the Future

Anna Kramer, Wired

To lure back workers and compete with the convenience of home, companies are offering more substantial perks and giving architects freedom to experiment.

ChatGPT Is Already Influencing Skills for Advertising and Marketing Jobs

Patrick Kulp, Adweek

AI leads some companies to prioritize quality assurance and strategy.

From The Great Resignation to The Great Refusal—here’s what the 5 ‘Great Rs’ mean for the future of the work

Heather E. McGowan and Chris Shipley, Fast Company

We are no longer centered on where we work, but rather where work fits in our lives.