China's ZTE is alive, escaping what once looked like a death sentence for repeatedly violating U.S. sanctions and being seen as a threat to national security.
The details: The deal requires a $1 billion fine for ZTE, plus $400 million in escrow to cover any future violations. ZTE will also have to "retain a team of special compliance coordinators" who answer to the U.S., and change its top leadership.
TV advertising experts say television is going digital, but marketers still find a lot of value buying TV ads the old-fashioned way, based off of broader demographic data, specifically gender and age.
Why it matters: For consumer brands that need a mass reach, like those that sell toilet paper or toothpaste, buying TV ads based on demographics and age can be effective and cost-efficient for pushing products. But for brands that sell very distinct products to niche audiences — like custom sneakers, for example — digital ad-targeting is necessary to reach specific audiences.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron took turns criticizing President Trump's recent moves on trade and the Iran deal and his rejection of a multilateral foreign policy in a joint press conference Thursday ahead of the G7, which starts tomorrow in Canada — much to Trump's reported displeasure.
The big picture: Macron, who not long ago was reveling in his position as Trump's favored international partner, was more willing to go to bat against him. "I believe in multilateral cooperation. This allows us to fight hegemony," he said. "Perhaps President Trump doesn't mind that he's being isolated today, but these six countries have shared values, we represent an economic market that has the strength of history behind it and also represents true international strength today."
Marketing experts agreed Thursday that data analytics teams are not working closely enough with marketing and sales departments at major brands.
Why it matters: Data-driven marketing for direct-to-consumer products is exploding. But lack of collaboration between data teams and sales teams means that advertising and marketing efforts aren't customized enough to push products.
UPS and the Teamsters union, which represents 260,000 of the delivery service's workers, are deadlocked on collective bargaining negotiations — as the company aims to offer delivery services seven days a week — and they don't seem to be close to an agreement as the union has already voted in favor of a strike, reports CNN.
Why it matters: The deadline for the two sides to come up with a new arrangement is August 1, and if they fail to do so it could lead to a devastating strike that may disrupt the nation's economy.
One of the early interracial ads in America, a 1969 image featured black and white young boys enjoying Coca-Colas on a bench, was the ad that forever changed the career of Jonathan Mildenhall.
Why it matters: Mildenhall — Co-Founder and CEO of TwentyFirstCenturyBrand, former Airbnb CMO, and former Coca-Cola Company SVP Integrated Marketing Communication and Design Excellence — says that ad has inspired every ad he's made in his career since leaving Coca-Cola, because of the nuances in the one simple image. "The size of the idea is much ore important than the size of the budget," Mildenhall said at Nielsen's annual Consumer 360 Conference in Washington DC.
Comcast Advertising President Marcien Jenckes says all industry companies (in television, telecom and beyond) are "not working together enough" to unleash the power of TV.
Why it matters: Jenckes argues that the entire television industry, from streaming to legacy players, should be sharing better data insights to advance the industry as a whole and to keep up with consumer expectations.
The Young Turks (TYT), a progressive video-based media commentary and news company, is expected to launch an audio business that will combine new shows with existing ones that will be reimagined under TYT Network’s audio umbrella.
Why it matters: It's TYT's biggest bet on audio-driven content to date and a new business line for the company. Up to this point, TYT has relied mostly on video advertising through YouTube.
PetSmart reportedly has hired restructuring advisors to help slash its $8 billion-plus debt pile, almost all of which is attributable to the retailer's 2015 buyout by BC Partners.
Bottom line: It's not an emergency — most of the PetSmart notes don't come due for several more years, and restructuring now could take advantage of price discounts that BC hopes are fleeting — but it's the sort of thing that drives private equity critics crazy. And with good reason.
Speaking at Nielsen's Consumer 360 Summit in Washington, executives from brands, publishers and non-profits agree that using traditional demographics, such as race and religion, to target advertisements to people is often less effective than targeting people by their diverse interests, such as movies and hobbies.
Why it matters: Data-based marketing has made this type of targeting possible. In the past, placing TV or newspaper ads allowed marketers to target by age, gender and location. Today, there are many more targeting opportunities, and more diverse targeting can be more effective.
Last month, Sears announced its plan to close another 72 stores and identified 100 as unprofitable, after its 26th consecutive quarter with diminishing sales. Sears and similar retailers have suffered largely because of changing consumer behavior and market dominance of Amazon, which was responsible for 44% of all U.S. e-commerce sales last year.
But, but, but: While sales have declined the past six years for Sears, brick-and-mortar sales overall have increased each of the past four, driven by retailers who blend online and offline commerce and deliver memorable experiences. Companies such as Amazon and Apple built on consumer-first retail DNA, while other leaders such as Walmart and Target have acquired that DNA through aggressive acquisitions of next-generation brands such as Jet.com, Bonobos and Shipt.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told CNBC on Thursday morning that U.S. negotiators have "executed a definitive agreement with ZTE."
Why it matters: Compromise with ZTE — a repeat violator of U.S. sanctions against Iran and North Korea and a company identified as a national security threat by the Pentagon — could set a dangerous precedent for trade negotiations with China.
President Trump is scheduled to attend the upcoming G7 summit in Quebec, Canada beginning tomorrow, although he is complaining vociferously about going.
The bottom line: "It will be the most dysfunctional G7 meeting — by a long margin — since its first in 1975. the Europeans, Japanese, and Canadians all feel like they've been wrong footed by the American president on trade." Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group tells Axios in his distinctive punctuation style.
