• Global advertising spending is expected to increase by a record 14 percent this year to $657 billion, spurred on by economic recovery from the pandemic, according to the latest forecast from Magna. Digital ad sales are on track to grow by 20 percent to $419 billion to make up 64 percent of total ad sales, including an increase of 20 percent in the United States, where Magna predicts an overall gain of $34 billion this year. (The Hollywood Reporter)
• Starbucks Corp. filed a trademark application earlier this month looking to use its name and logo on a stadium, entertainment space or sports training facility, a move first noted last week on Twitter by trademark specialist and lawyer Josh Gerben. (Bloomberg)
• Amazon.com Inc. is on track to surpass Walmart Inc. as the largest retailer in the United States next year, according to a note published by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co., who said the e-commerce giant’s gross merchandise volume, a metric used to measure the value of goods sold over a certain amount of time, grew “significantly faster” than U.S. adjusted retail sales and U.S. e-commerce from 2014 to 2020. (CNBC)
• Apple Inc. plans to stop requiring vaccinated consumers to wear masks in many of its U.S. stores this week, according to people with knowledge of the matter, which would mark another move by a major retailer away from pandemic-era safety restrictions. (Bloomberg)

Olympics Buck Trend of Interest Gap for Men’s and Women’s Sports

Morning Consult

A former Amazon executive is quietly building a new $1 billion business inside Instacart that’s trying to rival Facebook and Google

Tom Dotan, Insider Premium

Instacart’s ad business generated hundreds of millions in sales last year. It’s led by an exec who grew Amazon’s ad operation into a Google and Facebook competitor.

 

The CW Is First Broadcaster to Wrap Upfront Talks, With Hefty CPM Increases

Jason Lynch, Adweek

Saturday night expansion added linear, digital inventory to this year’s negotiations.

 

State Of Streaming Ads Ignites Contention, Report Shows

Ethan Jakob Craft, Ad Age

While the streaming wars may be in full swing, with advertisers and platforms chomping at the bit to innovate new ways to reach consumers, few of the major players agree on the state of the rapidly evolving industry, according to new research from data intelligence firm Conviva.

 

Google Commits to Opening Up Its Ad Stack, Marketers Remain Skeptical

Lucinda Southern and Ronan Shields, Adweek

For years, publishers and advertisers have criticized Google for using its market dominance to its own advantage in navigating ad auctions and evidence of that is starting to stack up.

The Podcasting Hype House From Hell

Ashley Carman, The Verge

How China’s biggest audio platform funded one man’s frat boy dreams.

 

Ad innovations propel huge growth of NPR’s podcast revenues

Elizabeth Shilpa, World Association of News Publishers

NPR has been a leader in podcasts for the last 15 years. Meanwhile, NPM, NPR’s sponsorship arm, has been successfully implementing plans to monetise the podcasts.

 

Spotify Closes in on Deal With ‘Call Her Daddy’ Podcaster Alexandra Cooper

Todd Spangler, Variety

Spotify is on the hunt for another big-name podcaster: The company is in advanced talks with Alexandra Cooper to bring talk show “Call Her Daddy” — currently produced and distributed by Barstool Sports — exclusively to its platform. The pact could be worth $20 million or more.

 

TV Networks See Opportunity in Nielsen’s Pandemic Botched Audience Count

Alexandra Carter, Adweek

After years of complaints about shortcomings in TV audience measurement options and Nielsen’s recent rating miscalculation, major media companies are starting to take matters into their own hands.

How YouTube Unboxing Videos Helped Kids Take Over the Toy Industry

Matthew Townsend, Bloomberg

It’s “created a revolution, not an evolution,” says one media executive.

 

Instagram’s New Affiliate Tool Brings Influencer Marketing Closer To Proving ROI

Ilyse Liffreing, Ad Age

The social platform gives more insights into how the new tool will help marketers.

 

This TikTok Creator Is Famous for Making Fake Ads. Now Brands Are Hiring Her.

Emmy Liederman, Adweek

Grace Wells signed with creative production company Tool of North America in April.

 

The NFT boom has gone bust — for now

Scott Nover, Quartz

Weekly trade volume of NFTs peaked at nearly $200 million in the last week of February, fueled by $125 million worth of activity on NBA Top Shot, the Dapper Labs-owned platform for buying and selling basketball highlight clips minted on a blockchain.

 

What Is a Flying Car?

Cade Metz and Erin Griffith, The New York Times

Inside Silicon Valley’s 10-year quest to make soaring above a crowded city street as easy as calling an Uber.

Chinese ecommerce site Shein hit with trademark disputes

Dave Lee, Financial Times

Apparel brands including Dr Martens maker AirWair International accuse platform of trademark infringement.

 

Companies Desperate to Reopen Ask: What’s Your Vaccination Status?

Lauren Hirsch, The New York Times

Companies are sending surveys, offering cash rewards and requiring disclosures to find out how much of their work force is vaccinated.

 

What are you legally allowed to say at work? A group of fired Googlers could change the rules.

Shirin Ghaffary, Recode

The NLRB is expanding its complaint against Google for allegedly retaliating against employee activists in what could turn out to be a precedent-setting decision.

 

The share of US companies planning to slash their office space is plummeting

Michelle Cheng, Quartz

Only 9% of large US companies, defined as 10,000 employees or more, anticipate their office portfolios will get “significantly smaller” over the next three years, according to a new report from CBRE, a commercial real estate company.

 

After the Pandemic, a Wave of Spending by Older Consumers

Ishika Mookerjee and Lisa Pham, Bloomberg

That’s the view of money managers who see huge pent-up demand from wealthy seniors for medical services and luxury goods. They also expect that the forced adoption of the internet by older people during lockdown will open up this demographic permanently to e-commerce.

 

As America reopens, businesses — from airlines to arenas — see an uptick in bad behavior

Contessa Brewer and Jessica Golden, CNBC

American and Southwest airlines recently stopped serving alcohol after an uptick in violence during flights. Rowdy NBA fans involved in recent incidents have been banned from arenas, some even arrested. Target pulled back on selling sports trading cards after a violent dispute.

 

Why America’s post-vaccine summer is off to a slow start

Naomi Shavin and Sara Fischer, Axios

Americans are itching to put pandemic life behind them, but many of the necessary ingredients for a summer of carefree fun — everything from neighborhood pools to car rentals — still aren’t fully available.

 

Companies Spend Big on ESG Investments, Hoping for Long-Term Payoff

Kristin Broughton and Mark Maurer, The Wall Street Journal

Companies are racking up hefty bills as they invest in new facilities and products to reduce emissions or meet other targets, hoping for a payoff down the road.

 

Amazon Prime has signed up most of America—now it wants the rest of the world

Marc Bain, Quartz

This year, when Prime Day takes place June 21 and 22, 20 countries will take part in the event, which has grown into a two-day shopping bonanza. The number of countries would have been greater, but Amazon decided to postpone Prime Day in Canada and India due to Covid-19.

 

Chipotle customers are complaining about receiving ‘tiny’ burritos even as the chain says it’s raising prices

Mary Meisenzahl, Insider

Chipotle customers are complaining about small portions on social media. The chain says it is not facing any supply chain shortages or issues. Many brands are shrinking boxes and keeping prices the same to deal with inflation.

 

American workers are quitting at the highest rate in decades

Tim Fernholz, Quartz

There’s something unusual going on in the labor market: US workers are gaining leverage over employers.

 

Teens juice the summer recovery

Courtenay Brown, Axios

Teenagers are stepping up to staff an economic comeback that’s expected to kick into overdrive this summer. Summer is always the most popular time for teens to get paying gigs, but the pace this year is eye-popping.

 

U.S. Air Travelers Top 2 Million for First Time in Pandemic

Tony Czuczka, Bloomberg

Daily U.S. air travelers exceeded 2 million for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began, reaching almost three-quarters of the volume recorded on the same day in 2019, according to the Transportation Security Administration.

 

The US is slipping as a tourist destination, and more than Covid is to blame

Kristin Majcher, Quartz

The country’s share of overseas travelers fell from 13.7% in 2015 to 11.7% in 2018 as potential visitors chose other destinations, and a US Travel Association forecast expects a further decline to 10.4% by 2023.

 

Royal Caribbean says no change to sailing plans despite Covid cases on Celebrity ship

Nadine El-Bawab, CNBC

Royal Caribbean Cruises said Friday it isn’t changing its sailing plans this summer despite reporting two positive Covid-19 cases aboard its Celebrity Millennium cruise ship on Thursday.

 

Weddings Took a Big Hit in 2020. Enter the Micro-Wedding.

Eilene Zimmerman, The New York Times

As nuptials were canceled across the country, wedding planners have downscaled — and in some cases their new offerings will stick.