Plans to create the biggest agency in history have fallen apart, and the ad world is quick to chime in about why the merger failed.
WPP’s Martin Sorrell, who stood to lose from the merger, predictably, dumped all over the breakup news in various interviews. Sorrell said the deal was only driven by emotions and “Gallic charm” and added, “Their eyes were bigger than their tummy.”
Quartz wrote this I-told-you-so piece suggesting the deal was doomed in the first place, noting that canceled deals are up 30 percent. “Notwithstanding the ins and outs of this particular deal in this particular industry, don’t say that we didn’t warn you. The history of mega-deals is not a happy one, as we wrote recently.”
Adland pronounced it the “world’s biggest fail.”
The Deal said the merger was always likely to be tricky.
‘This was not the sort of deal you could push through by committee and consensus’ https://t.co/CbIe9ZetOq $OMC $PUB.PA pic.twitter.com/q9cYSw7cEx
— The Deal (@TheDealNewsroom) May 9, 2014
Twitter, being Twitter, was less nuanced:
“The idea for a merger started as a joke”. Always a good sign. https://t.co/qRe3F4g1bS
— Ben Walsh (@BenDWalsh) May 9, 2014
$35 billion Omnicom-Publicis merger off. The world is safe for ad agencies again. https://t.co/LQ1HdgqPX3 — David Moore (@Elroythecat) May 9, 2014
Did anyone NOT see this coming? #Publicis and #Omnicom Call Off Mega-Merger https://t.co/WIzY3TDyiO — Len Ostroff (@lenostroff) May 9, 2014
Others wondered about the fallout:
“Weddings are stressful, even for ad giants… no word on if gifts will be returned.” –@theskimm on called off Omnicom/Publicis merger
— Junia Geisler (@JuniaGeisler) May 9, 2014
I wonder what the legal fees are like on this? Omnicom, Publicis Abandon $35 Billion Advertising Merger https://t.co/qthpN9pAuh
— Scott Raynovich (@rayno) May 9, 2014
-
Marketing Briefing: U.S. marketers prepare contingency plans amid potential TikTok ban
The likelihood of a ban is still up in the air, marketers and agency execs say, which is why some are simply taking a wait and see approach while others are preparing contingency plans.
-
In graphic detail: Gamers are warming up to in-game ads
Comscore questioned gamers about their attitudes toward advertisements in games for its State of Gaming report. Digiday got a sneak peek.
-
Meta, Snapchat, Twitter layoffs spell trouble for agency relationships
The speed and scale of platform layoffs only compound the problem of marketers feeling neglected by the social media giants.
-
SponsoredBrands are optimizing video production to drive user acquisition
Sponsored by QuickFrame by MNTN With brands increasingly investing in video ads on social media, marketers are enhancing their video production capabilities to unlock growth on Facebook and Instagram. Especially urgent in an uncertain economic climate, brands must minimize production costs while creating a high enough volume of social media videos to identify the creative […]
-
Lessons from marketers’ experience with generative AI
Enthralled as marketers clearly are with the possibilities of AI, they’re starting to think they might need a strategy for it.
-
Digiday+ Research deep dive: Agency spending on TikTok plateaus as brands struggle with what to make of the app
Agency clients' spending on TikTok may have hit a plateau, while brand marketers are still searching for the right answer when it comes to how much confidence they should have in the platform.
