• Starbucks Corp. is launching an olive oil-infused line of coffee drinks, called Oleato, in more than 20 locations across Italy today. The beverage concept, which will arrive in select U.S. stores later this spring, is the personal project of outgoing CEO Howard Schultz, who was inspired after a trip to Italy where he saw locals drinking olive oil as a daily ritual. (CNBC)
• Microsoft Corp. announced it will bring its Xbox games to Nvidia Corp.’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service, marking the latest bid by the technology giant to demonstrate that its planned $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. won’t hinder competition in the video game industry. Nvidia had previously expressed concern over the potential merger but, in a joint statement with Microsoft released Tuesday, said it is now “offering its full support for regulatory approval.” (Bloomberg) 
• AT&T Inc. is reportedly considering a sale of its cybersecurity business as part of an ongoing effort by the telecom giant to pay down debt associated with its $108.7 billion acquisition of Time Warner Inc. in 2018. Barclays PLC will oversee any forthcoming transaction, according to people familiar with the matter. (Reuters)

TV’s Existential Challenge: Gen Z’s View Time About Half Of Older Generations’

MediaPost 

Walmart Ad Revenue Grew 30% To $2.7 Billion in 2022, And Is Buoying Its Profit Margin

James Hercher, AdExchanger

Walmart had a mixed day with investors following its earnings call. Sales growth plateaued last year while Walmart’s investments in store associate raises, technology and a new system of fulfillment centers are still going up.

Advertisers remain committed to Google as TikTok and AI-powered Bing try to become search competitors

Kimeko McCoy, Digiday

Advertisers say they’re not ready to pony up the cash for those options — at least not until they prove their brand safe and scalable enough to work with, or in place of, Google.

Jen Psaki, Once the Voice of Biden, Moves to an Anchor Chair

Michael M. Grynbaum, The New York Times

The former White House press secretary will start hosting a weekly MSNBC talk show on March 19. As for the president, “I am not going to gratuitously attack him.”

Candle taps James Goldston for new nonfiction studio

Sara Fischer, Axios

Candle Media, the media roll-up company backed by Blackstone and led by former Disney executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, has hired former ABC News president James Goldston to lead a new, in-house production studio focused on nonfiction projects and documentaries.

Black influencers are still facing pay inequity

Katie Hicks, Marketing Brew

“I think this is something that we’re just now truly getting a chance to dive into,” Brittany Bright, founder of The Influencer League, told us.

Spotify Official Overseeing Rogan, Podcast Partnerships to Exit

Ashley Carman, Bloomberg

Max Cutler, Spotify Technology SA’s  head of audio talk shows and partnerships, is leaving the company to start a new venture. He plans to leave on May 1, according to a company spokesperson and a memo obtained by Bloomberg News.

A Popular Player at LSU, Which Is Sponsored by Nike, Has Her Own Shoe Deal With Puma

Rachel Bachman, The Wall Street Journal

Flau’jae Johnson’s personal endorsement with a company other than the one that sponsors her school marks a new phase in college-athlete deals.

Twitter will now alert you if a tweet you interacted with gets a Community Note

Steve Dent, Engadget

You’ll know if you possibly retweeted or liked fake news.

Microsoft Softens Limits on Bing After User Requests

Joseph De Avila, The Wall Street Journal

AI chatbot’s disturbing replies prompted caps four days ago.

Takeaways from the Supreme Court’s hearing in blockbuster internet speech case

Brian Fung and Tierney Sneed, CNN

For nearly three hours on Tuesday, the nine justices peppered attorneys representing Google, the US government and the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, an American student killed in a 2015 ISIS attack, with questions about how the court could design a ruling that exposes harmful content recommendations to liability while still protecting innocuous ones.

Facebook and Instagram could have 12 million paying subscribers by early 2024, says BofA

Jonathan Vanian, CNBC

Meta’s new Verified subscription service could land nearly 12 million subscribers by 2024, according to a Bank of America (BoFA) research note published Tuesday.

TikTok opens data to US researchers in its bid to be more transparent

Mariella Moon, Engadget

The app has launched its research API after beta testing it over the past few months.

Tumblr iOS revenue increased 125% since launching its parody of paid verification

Sarah Perez, TechCrunch

Tumblr’s parody of paid verification has already delivered the social network and blogging platform a 125% boost in iOS in-app purchase revenue since November, according to a new analysis of the app’s in-app consumer spending. The company, now operated by WordPress owner Automattic following its 2019 acquisition, launched its response to Twitter’s paid verification hustle with the addition of its own purely cosmetic double blue checks — a sort of tongue-in-cheek rebuttal to the idea that subscription-based verification had any real value.

Adidas renews deal with Major League Soccer

Jessica Golden, CNBC

The deal, announced days before MLS kicks off its 28th season, goes through 2030 and is valued at $830 million, according to a person involved in the deal. It represents Adidas’ largest-ever investment in North American soccer.

Pay-Per-Chew: More restaurants trying subscription programs

Dee-Ann Durbin, The Associated Press

Large chains like Panera and P.F. Chang’s as well as neighborhood hangouts are increasingly experimenting with the subscription model as a way to ensure steady revenue and customer visits. Some offer unlimited drinks or free delivery for a monthly fee; others will bring out your favorite appetizer each time you visit.

Why Some DTC Brands Are Reducing Their Influencer Marketing Budgets

Phoebe Bain, Ad Age

Despite the sector’s overall growth, some direct-to-consumer companies are pulling back on their creator economy investments.

After a successful Super Bowl ad, Temu’s growth is outpacing rivals like Target

Vidhi Choudhary, Modern Retail

The e-commerce platform, which entered the U.S. last September positioning itself as an app featuring steep discounts and incredibly low prices, has launched an aggressive marketing campaign to get more Americans to visit its website and download its app. 

Patrón Tequila serves AI-generated cocktails for National Margarita Day

Jessica Deyo, Marketing Dive

Patrón Tequila launched an artificial intelligence (AI) art generator that crafts personalized images of Patron Margaritas ahead of National Margarita Day on Feb. 22, according to a press release. The effort also features a tie-up with music star Becky G.

FTC Alleges Supplement Company ‘Hijacked’ Amazon Reviews to Boost Sales

Megan Graham, The Wall Street Journal

Bountiful Co. says it used Amazon’s ‘variation’ feature to highlight similar products and didn’t deceive shoppers.

Top brands pull out of Russia, but their goods remain easy to find

Alexander Marrow, Reuters

Despite European, North American and Japanese companies exiting Russia over its actions in Ukraine, the impact on Russian consumers is minimal, although delivery times can be longer and some goods more expensive.

Amazon employees push CEO Andy Jassy to drop return-to-office mandate

Annie Palmer, CNBC

Employees created an internal petition and Slack channel to share their grievances.

Tech layoffs aside, employers in these 10 states are struggling to hire right now

Shalene Gupta, Fast Company

Want to have the upper hand in a job search? Consider Alaska, West Virginia, Louisiana, or Montana.

Your Next Career Move: Part-Time Executive

Francesca Fontana, The Wall Street Journal

‘Fractional executive’ jobs are creating new options for mid- to late-career professionals; ‘What is the “third third” of your career going to look like?’

Bernie Sanders throws support behind striking YouTube Music workers

Makena Kelly, The Verge

The Alphabet Workers Union calls it the first-ever strike in Google’s history.

Howard Schultz: Unions ‘a manifestation of a much bigger problem’

Danielle Wiener-Bronner, CNN

“It’s my belief that the efforts of unionization in America are in many ways a manifestation of a much bigger problem,” he told Harlow. “There is a macro issue here that is much, much bigger than Starbucks.”

McKinsey Plans to Eliminate About 2,000 Jobs in One of Its Biggest Rounds of Cuts 

Sridhar Natarajan, Bloomberg

The firm known for devising staff-reduction plans for its clients is taking the ax to some of its own, with the move expected to focus on support staff in roles that don’t have direct contact with clients, according to people with knowledge of the matter.