• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, September 2, 2014

Doh! The boys get caught acting like boys again. In "Marketing Magazine," Nicola Kemp writes, "Tinder is having a moment. Wedged in the back of a sweaty lift at a London advertising agency last week, I was the unfortunate eavesdropper on two male executives discussing the relative merits of a client. 'I’d swipe right for her' was the consensus. The ubiquitous dating app has entered the vernacular, and technology has presented the uninspired with yet another platform for sexual objectification. A platform that is being embraced to the tune of 800 million swipes a day." Guys in advertising agencies objectifying women? Say it isn't so! Any of you ad guys want to fess up?

The ad tech space is heating up. Partnerships. Acquisitions. Affiliations. You name it, it's happening. The big news this week is the possible acquisition of Criteo by Publicis Groupe. Goldman Sachs Analyst Debra Schwartz sees consolidation within the space, and she views Criteo is the most likely target. Last week Les Echos reported that Publicis has restarted talks to buy Criteo. Reuters later reported a deal was unlikely. Whatever the case may be, Schwartz thinks the space is heating up and said: "While M&A in ad tech over the last five years has largely been driven by sub $500mn private deals, we see several factors including high cash balances, increasing disparity in valuations, an evolving competitive landscape, and growing benefits of scale that could accelerate the pace and scale of activity. We reiterate our view that Criteo could be a valuable asset to several in the digital ecosystem including agencies, publishers, and ad tech pure plays."

Now that Pernod Ricard USA is out with that very cool Jeff Bridges "White Russian" ad for its Kahlua brand, Pernod has selected Dentsu's 360i to handle media planning and buying as well as social media. Of the selection, Pernod Ricard USA Senior VP of Marketing Pierre Berard said: "Our decision to select 360i came down to our confidence in the quality of the team, as well as their data-driven brand insights and sales-building ideas. We also felt they had a strong vision for the new media landscape." Wait, what? Even without David Berkowitz?

Oh, now it's a Florida homecoming! Remember Jordan Zimmerman of Ft. Lauderdale-based Zimmerman? You know, the guy who promised to have lunch with and give an agency tour to anyone who impressed him? Well he's hired back Michael Goldberg to become the agency's CEO. Goldberg was CEO of Harris Durry Cohen in 2003 when Zimmerman acquired the shop. Goldberg stayed on until 2011 when he left for Porter Novelli and then Deutsch New York. He's now returned to Zimmerman. Of the homecoming Zimmerman said: "I know how to grow retail business, and Michael is a master at using our proprietary tools and the tools of advertising to help accelerate that growth. The magic formula between us has always been our mutual respect -- and our having the courage to occasionally collide." Ouch. Some bad blood back in the day?

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