June 14 2023 - Media, Tech & AI

👋Happy Wednesday, friends. Please see a special announcement below!

Accenture has announced plans to invest $3 billion in artificial intelligence over the next three years. The company aims to double its A.I.-focused staff to 80,000 and expand its use of generative A.I. in client work. Other consulting firms, such as PwC and EY, have also made significant investments in A.I., with investments in generative A.I. alone expected to reach $42.6 billion by the end of the year. Despite the embrace of A.I., consulting firms are still navigating the implications of the technology while executives emphasize the importance of the human element in consulting services.

Consumer prices rose 4 percent in the year through May, the slowest pace in more than two years, which is an encouraging sign for the Fed as they plot their next interest rate move. The CPI climbed less than expected, offering relief to consumers, and investors are betting that Fed officials will leave rates unchanged at their meeting this week. While inflation remains stubbornly high, a cooling economy and weakening job market could further weigh it down.

• The WGA is entering its seventh week of strike, and there is a possibility that actors may join them soon.  SAG-AFTRA has authorized a strike if negotiations break down and the current contract expiration with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) on June 30. Advertisers and agency executives are monitoring the strike, with clients asking about contingency plans. The hope for a quick resolution has diminished, leading agencies to advise clients to prioritize sports, live events, and reality TV ad buys. The strike is expected to impact not only the fall season but potentially the first quarter of 2024 as well. Marketers were already shifting their focus to sports and live events, and the lack of original programming will further expedite this trend. Flexibility in ad deals has become a major concern for marketers, as they want to avoid long-term commitments. The strike may also have ripple effects on streaming, digital, and social advertising, with potential cost increases in those areas.
• The Directors Guild of America (DGA) has reached a tentative agreement for a new film and TV contract, which former DGA President Paris Barclay describes as the biggest they have ever negotiated. While the DGA does not provide a dollar value for contracts, the pay increases in the new contract are higher than the previous one. The first-year pay increase is 5%, double the previous 2.5% raise. The second-year pay hike is 4%, 33.3% higher than the previous 3%, and the third-year raise is 3.5%, 16.7% higher than the 3% achieved in 2020. The new contract also includes a new residuals structure for foreign streaming, resulting in a 76% increase in foreign residuals on major streaming platforms. The deal is currently up for membership ratification, with voting scheduled to conclude on June 23. Despite some opposition on social media, the new contract is expected to be approved by DGA members.
• McDonald's has commissioned a new Game Boy game to celebrate Grimace's 52nd birthday called "Grimace's Birthday." The game is a platformer where Grimace skateboards through McDonaldland, collecting purple milkshakes and searching for other mascots to throw a birthday party. Developed by Krool Toys and Gumpy Function, the game was created using GB Studio, a development tool for Nintendo handhelds. While McDonald's has not officially released the game's ROM file, it has been found and made available for download. This release follows McDonald's previous venture into retro gaming with a Chicken McNugget-shaped handheld in China.

• The UK government is investing nearly £150 million in a network of research labs to develop next-generation special effects using technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), aiming to future-proof the country's film and TV production industry. The funding will support four new research and development labs focusing on visual effects, motion-capture technology, and AI. The national hub will be located at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, with regional labs in West Yorkshire, Dundee, and Belfast. The government is also supporting grassroots music venues, video game developers, London Fashion Week, and the BFI film festival as part of its efforts to boost the creative economy and reach its target of growing the UK creative industries by £50 billion and creating 1 million extra jobs by 2030.
• Edelman has launched a specialized unit called Edelman Business Marketing, focused on driving reputation, business demand, and revenue growth for B2B clients worldwide. The group will offer integrated marketing programs aimed at reaching B2B buyers, including services such as audience research, thought leadership strategy, content marketing, and earned communications.
• Spotify has rolled out its own ad analytics platform in 11 markets, including the UK, US, Brazil and Australia. The platform, which will include set of tools allowing advertisers to measure their audio and podcast ad performance, enables members with an Ad Analytics account to track results through a centralized dashboard, with data insights provided through a visual graph that details impressions, unique audience member exposure, and members who have streamed ads on the app's platform.

• L'Oreal's venture capital fund BOLD has invested in Rembrand, a startup launched in February by ad tech veteran Omar Tawakol. Rembrand uses generative AI to insert product placement into video content in a more organic way than the traditional model, by analysing the light, shadow, reflectivity, motion, occlusion and camera angle of existing footage before placing a photo-realistic product image or animation into it. The company raised $8m in seed funding, which was led by Greycroft and UTA Ventures, with participation from BOLD and other investors.
• Iconic synth manufacturer Moog has been acquired by inMusic, which already owns brands like Alesis and Akai. The acquisition is aimed at helping Moog overcome ongoing challenges related to global distribution and supply chain concerns, including chip shortages. Despite the acquisition, Moog will continue to develop synthesizers at its headquarters in North Carolina, but it remains to be seen if the manufacturing process will change. The acquisition also opens up possibilities for brand cross-pollination, potentially leading to collaborations between Moog and other inMusic brands. Moog recently celebrated its 70th anniversary.

• Amazon Prime Video may soon introduce an ad tier, following the trend set by other streaming services like Disney+ and Netflix. While there is no official confirmation from Amazon, it's believed to add an ad-supported tier to generate additional revenue. Amazon already has infrastructure in place through its ad-supported streaming TV solutions, and ads during events like Thursday Night Football have proven to be effective.
• Meta is embracing some classic social features in its platforms. In its Horizon Worlds, Meta has introduced a "World Chat" feature that allows users to communicate with each other in real-time. Users can invite others to private or group chats and the platform automatically deletes messages that violate its rules.

• YouTube has announced that it is lowering the eligibility requirements for the YouTube Partner Program, allowing more creators to monetize their content on the platform. Creators with smaller followings will now be able to access a handful of monetization methods, including paid chat, tipping, channel memberships, and shopping features. Under the new eligibility policy, the YouTube Partner Program will be open to creators once they reach 500 subscribers and 3,000 valid watch hours instead of the previous 4,000, or 3 million Shorts views compared to the original 10 million.
• Subway has joined McDonald's and Burger King in their long-standing advertising tete-a-tete with a third player that saw an AI-generated copy-led execution. The latest spot for Subway, created by Saatchi & Saatchi, asked AI technology ChatGPT about the size of McDonald's Big Mac and a Burger King Whopper compared to Subway's footlong sandwich, with the response presented on a poster that claimed Subway's footlong was the biggest and best sandwich of the fast food giants.

• OpenAI reportedly warned Microsoft about integrating GPT-4, its advanced AI language model, too quickly into Bing search engine due to the inaccurate and unpredictable responses it produced. Despite the warning, Microsoft proceeded with the launch of Bing Chat, resulting in a chatbot that would often give strange and incorrect responses. Microsoft had to limit the chatbot's responses and has since worked to improve its accuracy, although issues still persist.
• Havas has undergone a revamp of its brand identity after two decades. The aim is to make the agency more modern, meaningful, and easier to navigate for clients, partners, and talents. The unified brand identity was created by the Conran Design Group. As part of the refresh, all Havas branded networks and operating companies will be brought together under a new shared brand identity. Non-Havas branded networks and operating companies will maintain their individual identities but will include an endorsement linking back to Havas. The rollout of the new identity began on June 13 in several cities and will continue throughout the year.

• The Summer of Smoke Is Just Getting Started
• A Bambi Live-Action Movie Is in the Works to Make Us Relive Childhood Trauma
• Westfield to Give Up San Francisco Mall Due to 'Challenging Operating Conditions'
• Obama’s Netflix Series Asks If We’ve Ignored the Workplace for Too Long
• A Reckoning Arrives for Creator Economy Startups
• Why Shopify Ditched Its Amazon-Like Delivery Dreams
• Overstock bids $21.5 million for Bed Bath & Beyond intellectual assets
• Welcome to White Castle. Would You Like Human Interaction With That?

• Pixar teases an adorable alien abduction in first trailer for Elio

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