Nearly a decade ago, Publicis Groupe CEO Arthur Sadoun made waves when he declared that the holding company wouldn’t attend the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity in 2018. Instead, Publicis Groupe was prioritizing its AI platform Marcel, opting to spend on innovation over hobnobbing at the beaches and the Palais.

It was a statement that shook the ad world—but Publicis Groupe ended up sending some employees anyway, and the next year, it was seemingly back in full force.

Cannes Lions has long had a reputation as a boondoggle—hard not to, considering the price that comes with partying and downing rosé in the South of France. But the move touched a nerve that could still be reverberating today.

“It forced people to rationalize their investment differently and justify their investment differently,” Michael Kassan, the founder of MediaLink and the founder and CEO of 3C Ventures, told Marketing Brew.

How things change, how things stay the same. Whenever there’s looming uncertainty in the market or the perception of difficulty ahead, the annual festival serves as a leading indicator of sorts. Does a pullback at the festival indicate bigger warning signs about the industry?

This year, despite the uncertainty given the war in Iran, skyrocketing oil prices affecting travel, and the continued consolidation at holding companies, there are plenty of reasons for a Cannes Lions pullback. That doesn’t seem to be the case—at least, so far. Cannes Lions clocked more than 13,000 attendees at last year’s festival, and this year, organizers anticipate the same attendance level.

“It’s very much business as usual,” Kassan said, later adding that he has “not seen one brand, one publisher, say, ‘We’re not going to Cannes,’ or ‘We’re not spending money.’”

That’s not to say that there won’t be some belt-tightening. WPP, for one, won’t have a beach this year, according to Ad Age, which noted that PMG would be taking over the space. But even as Cannes Lions has developed a reputation for its extravagance, the festival continues to be seen as too important to miss—mostly.

“While budgets are under scrutiny and holding companies continue to consolidate, the stakes are simply too high to sit out,” Alan Schanzer, COO of Mediaplus, told us in an email, adding that the festival remains crucial for relationship-building.

Continue reading here.—KM

In the year of Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl, it’s no longer about convincing advertisers to invest in the Hispanic market. It’s about telling them how to.

That’s the premise of TelevisaUnivision’s upfront presentation, according to John Kozack, president of US ad sales and marketing, who we spoke to ahead of yesterday’s event. After more than two decades with the company, Kozack assumed his current position just a few weeks before upfronts kicked off—and he is leading TelevisaUnivision’s efforts after the company’s advertising revenue in the US declined 11% to $423 million at the end of Q4, per Variety.

Still, he said, he’s coming into this peak ad sales season energized, particularly as TelevisaUnivision highlights offerings and investments in sports, streaming, and new ways to own culture.

“Reaching an audience and moving an audience are two different things,” Kozack said. “We understand this audience better than anyone.”

Read more here.—JN

OpenAI’s ads business is growing up—and making room for more price-conscious advertisers.

The tech company, which first rolled out its pilot in February for logged-in adult users of the ChatGPT Free and Go subscription tiers, is rolling out more dynamic CPMs, according to two agency executives Marketing Brew spoke to. It’s also planning to become more flexible with the kinds of advertising verticals eligible to join its pilot program, and has extended the length of its initial pilot.

OpenAI, which recently missed user growth and revenue targets, claims the pilot has so far been successful. “We’re seeing no impact on consumer trust metrics, low dismissal rates of ads, and ongoing improvements in the relevance of ads as we learn from feedback,” the company wrote in a press release in March.

Asad Awan, head of monetization at OpenAI, told Marketing Brew in an email that “we’re expanding the pilot deliberately, with a focus on learning and getting the experience right for users.”

Continue reading here.—JS

If your brand can’t say it, maybe a creator can instead. This week’s episode features Grant and Ash, aka A Twink and A Redhead, who supply the creator perspective on working with brands, from those feeling picky to those ready to risk it all. How can (and can’t) brands and creators work best together? Give us a listen to find out.