Brand advertisers are reportedly avoiding advertising on news media websites around coronavirus coverage, prompting an urgent call from both publishers and the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) for them to stop the practice and get behind publishers and the media community. And it’s a call that’s now provoked a response from the CEO of the Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA), John Broome, defending brand owners from cutting spend and preserving cash while reiterating the advertising community’s appreciation of trusted news sources and a commitment to working through issues.

According to media buyers and planners, and marketers, ​COVID-19 will have a bigger impact ​on advertising than the ​GFC​.

Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has launched two new digital audio advertising initiatives to help brands find and engage audiences. The two new options are mood targeting and interactive shakeable audio ads through instream.

All the latest martech and adtech news this week from Banzai, Criteo, LiveRamp, Hootsuite, Zoho, EZ Texting, VDX.tv, and Adobe.

The ACCC’s adtech and ad agency services inquiry efforts are officially underway, with the industry watchdog calling for feedback and information from Australia’s digital advertising supply chain and services ecosystem.

Australia’s Information and Privacy Commissioner is taking Facebook to court, alleging serious privacy breaches that saw the personal data of more than 300,000 local consumers potentially disclosed to Cambridge Analytica for political profiling.

Panelists shared their views about how brands can assess what is a good place to start with audio advertising and how they can fit it in with their wider strategy with moderator Stephanie Famolaro from the Trade Desk. And there were some bold predictions about how audio will assume primacy in a screen-less future.

The growth in the Australian online advertising market has slowed, but still achieved 5.6 per cent year-on-year expansion to reach $9.3 billion expenditure for the 2019 calendar year, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Australia Online Advertising Expenditure report.

All the latest martech and adtech news this week from Salesforce, Confirmit, BlueVenn, Leanplum, QMS Media, Automation Anywhere, Verint and Adobe, and NetOpt

The latest total TV viewing measurement from OzTAM, Virtual Australia, is about to arrive. Here, we explain how this new marketing measurement has been created and what it promises

Nine’s half year results are out, the media conglomerate reporting revenue of just under $1.2 billion, group EBITDA of $251 million, and a net profit after tax of $114 million. Post specific items, the statutory net profit was $102 million, down 41 per cent. Net profit after tax and minority interests was $115 million, down 9 per cent.

The US Super Bowl has become as much about the football and half-time performances as it has about the ads. And this year’s game was notable not just for J Lo and Shakira, but a less visible innovation - blockchain-based digital advertising by Avocados from Mexico.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has officially embarked on an inquiry into digital advertising services as part of its newly granted powers regulating competitions across the country’s online advertising landscape.

It’s a business objective many FCMG and B2C brands will be all-too- familiar with: How to increase sales and household penetration of products. For Care Pharmaceuticals head of marketing A/NZ, Daniela Fra, this was the catalyst for what became an ambitious shift of Hydralyte’s advertising away from TV and above-the-line to a digital-first media strategy and approach.

In just weeks, Australian advertisers will get what many in the industry see as a game-changing capability for gauging what modern television consumption, reach and frequency truly looks like.

Online eyewear platform, Clearly, has embraced augmented reality (AR) Facebook advertising, claiming a first for shoppable ads with virtual try-on features on the social platform.

Nova is claiming an industry-first with a new interactive audio commercial format aimed at making radio, podcast and smart device advertising more engaging. And at least one creative industry leader sees both its possibilities for marketers tactically as well as strategically.

The ACCC’s case against Trivago for making misleading claims to consumers, coupled with tougher penalties for brands found breaching Australian Consumer Law, should be stern reminders of the importance of auditing advertising through the consumer’s eyes.

Scepticism is emerging across the industry around whether the Australian Government's response to the ACCC's Digital Platforms Inquiry goes far enough to tackle the issue of digital platform dominance in the media and marketing landscape.

All the latest martech and adtech news this week from Acquia, AgilOne, Adobe, Ogury, Canva, Broadsign and Adform, Zendesk, Pitney Bowes and LiveRamp.

There is still a lot of work to be done to gain trust within digital channels and metrics, according to a new study.