Welcome to The Refresh, your weekly download of what actually matters in advertising. Brought to you by Marketecture Media and written by AdTechGod.
Every Thursday, we bring you the latest news, commentary, and memes that speak the truth about this industry. If it's happening in AdTech, media, or marketing and it’s interesting, it’ll be here.
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Roku Launches Open Ads API to Boost CTV Campaign Integration (TV Tech)
The Trade Desk Swipes at Walled Gardens in New Brand Campaign (Adweek)
Ad Tech Briefing: IAB Tech Lab plans a ‘Programmatic Governance Council’ amid transparency rift (Digiday)
Innovid Expands Harmony with Conversion Signals, Unlocking Real-Time Optimization; Google’s Display & Video 360 an Early Adopter (Innovid)
AI Doesn’t Have to Mean Revenue Hit for Ad Industry, WPP Tech Chief Says (WSJ)
David Danziger on AI, Human Connection, and the Future of Ad Tech
David Danziger, SVP of partnerships at Dstillery, joins AdTechGod. They discuss David's journey in the ad tech industry, the impact of technological advancements on audience segmentation, and the role of AI and machine learning in advertising.
How Live Streaming and Programmatic Advertising Are Shaping the Future of Media
Dentsu’s Chief Investment & Activation Officer Cara Lewis joins us to discuss the powerful intersection of live content, attention, and programmatic advertising. Discover how Dentsu leverages programmatic to make live media more accessible, the growing importance of communal viewing experiences, and how partnerships with FreeWheel are driving innovation across live and on-demand platforms.
Meta to MRC: “We Don’t Need Your Safety Badge Anyway!” (But Does Anyone Even Care?)
Meta has lost its Media Rating Council (MRC) brand-safety accreditation for Facebook and Instagram feeds after pulling out of the group’s annual audits. The certification, granted in June 2025, confirmed Meta’s feeds were brand-safe, but the company withdrew from the process just months later. MRC then revoked its status, removing Meta from its accredited list. Critics say the move shows Meta views accreditation as an unnecessary expense and possible risk, especially after shifting from fact-checking to its user-based “Community Notes” moderation system.
Meta still holds accreditation for other ad metrics and is expanding third-party verification to Threads ads. But at this point, does anyone really care? Or are we just numb to the fact that major tech companies simply don’t?
The Sheriff Arrives in CTV Town
On this week's Monopoly Report newsletter, Alan Chapell takes aim at the CTV space, noting that regulators are starting to catch up to what they view as pervasive data collection, opaque rules, and poorly executed privacy choice mechanisms. He provides concrete examples of why CTV's Wild West days are over.
Speaking of The Monopoly Report, here’s a must-listen for the week: On the latest Monopoly Report podcast, Alan speaks with author Cory Doctorow about “Enshittification,” how platforms decay under monopoly power, and what we can do about it.
What’s Old Is New: Gannett Rebrands as USA TODAY Co.
Gannett Co. will rebrand as USA TODAY Co. on Nov. 18, adopting its most-recognized name and trading under the ticker TDAY on the NYSE. The move follows PEOPLE’s rebrand earlier this year, reflecting a wider media trend of leaning on iconic brands to stay relevant.
Comet Crashes: Amazon Kills the Shopping Bot
The agentic shopping bot lived and died by the agentic shopping bot. Perplexity’s Comet ran headfirst into the same wall everyone saw coming: Amazon’s terms of service.
The idea that bots should roam freely across ecommerce sites pretending to be human “on behalf of users” was always naive. If anything, this feels like the natural end of a hype cycle that never needed to start. Amazon’s response was predictable.
Let’s move on. Personally, I think the whole concept of AI agents buying stuff for you without oversight is a dumb idea — not because it’s technically impossible, but because it misunderstands the messy, emotional, and impulse-driven nature of how people actually shop.
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