It’s been seven years since advertisers were able to access and buy Youtube ads using non Google owned tech platforms. The murmurs within the industry are that this could soon change, with 3rd party suppliers potentially to be allowed to access Youtube inventory via their tech platforms. European Competition Regulators are said to be leading up to slapping the tech giant with an $18 Billion fine if they don’t comply!
What we are starting to see is the beginning of a potential shift where the heavyweights have to play fair with the other weight classes and this can only be a good thing for advertisers and the end consumer with more opportunity and healthy competition. Recently, Criteo won their case against Meta filed in 2019, over being booted from the Facebook Marketing Partner (FMP) program the previous July. Criteo’s complaint, which was lodged with the Autorité de la concurrence, France’s national competition regulator, alleged that Facebook was unfairly favoring its own services by restricting access to its platform at the expense of competitors, including making it more difficult for Criteo to acquire inventory.
If the Walled Gardens are starting to be further challenged, this can only lead to exciting developments and opportunities within the marketplace as opposed to a potentially boring and predictable dominance. As Anthony Joshua prepares for his rematch as underdog against Oleksandr Usyk, this could be the year for the underdog as the heavyweights have to comply and play fair in an ever evolving space.