YouTube will replace ABC as the exclusive Oscars broadcaster from 2029. The 98th ceremony showed what the shift means for media buyers as CTV ad spend doubles.

Meta is testing clickable links directly in Instagram post captions, capped at 10 per month, exclusively for Meta Verified subscribers - a shift from its long-standing link restriction policy.

Google launched Merchant Center for Agencies on March 11, 2026, giving digital marketing firms a single dashboard to manage all client accounts, diagnostics, and ad opportunities.

Amazon raises Prime Video's ad-free subscription from $2.99 to $4.99 a month on April 10, a 67% price increase rebranded as Prime Video Ultra with added 4K features.

Meta will discontinue Nielsen DMA targeting for automotive model ads on June 22, 2026, replacing it with Comscore Markets - campaigns must migrate or stop delivering

YouTube today hosts the 98th Academy Awards with four official livestreams, as the platform prepares to become the exclusive global broadcaster of the Oscars from 2029. Over 3 billion views of Oscars-related content accumulated in the past 12 months.

Aller Media, Bonnier News, and Schibsted endorsed IAB Sweden's expulsion of Meta on March 12 over fake ads, citing SEK 136 billion in fraud revenue and consumer harm on Facebook.

MCP adoption, IAB Sweden expels Meta, NBCU Olympics programmatic expansion, Trade Desk's AI bets, and Google search volatility define the week in ad tech.