Publicis Groupe's UK revenue declined by 2.6 percent on an organic basis in the third quarter, while the group's worldwide revenue growth was hit by a "sluggish" global economy. The group comprises Saatchi & Saatchi, Leo Burnett, DigitasLBi, Bartle Bogle Hegarty, ZenithOptimedia, Publicis Worldwide and Starcom MediaVest Group in the UK, said Q3 was weaker than expected.

The findings from The CMO Council's "Quantify How Well You Unify" report found that more than half (54%) of the respondents admitted their marketing technologies are either "not producing ROI," they "aren't sure" or are still working to gauge the impact compared to the 46% who said they can prove tangible ROI. Two in five marketers said they found difficulties in making a business case for marketing technology investments. However, the struggles have not knocked marketers' faith that technologies will drive better revenue.

Twitter is touting a more seamless way to bring tweets into brand apps in order to offer advertisers richer data with the launch of its Fabric suite of developer tools. It means developers can weave tweets and other Twitter features into their apps while also diving into Twitter's wider advertising platform to create more stable applications, boost revenue through the MoPub mobile ad exchange and access the site's real-time analytics. Twitter chief executive Dick Costolo labeled Fabric as the "future of mobile software development".

The fourth edition of Google's Consumer Barometer report claims to delve deeper into understanding how shoppers behave across multiple devices. Key learnings from the report include the UK having the highest number of grocery shoppers compared to the rest of Europe. Some 16% of UK consumers are most likely to buy their food and drink online compared to just 3% in Europe. In addition, 38% of shoppers under 24 research purchases online in the UK on their smartphones compared to an average of 21% across all age groups.

FMCG giant Unilever has upped its digital marketing spend from 17 percent in 2013 to 20 percent in 2014 as it places an increased focus on targeting consumers via mobile. Sales at the company increased 2.1 percent in the third quarter, down from 3.7 percent in the first half of the year. The company's chief executive Paul Polman told investors on a call this morning that the continued focus on digital marketing has led it reap better return on investment than via mainstream channels.

Guardian Media Group CEO Andrew Miller has called on Internet giants such as Google, Facebook and Twitter to face up to editorial responsibilities and challenged the BBC to open up its taxpayer-funded content to commercial news organisations. Delivering the annual Polis lecture, Miller outlined it was time for new media internet companies to define the role they play in the digital landscape and accept that they have the same responsibilities of traditional media organisations.

The U.S. cable TV broadcaster behind shows including "Mad Men," "Breaking Bad" and "The Walking Dead" has acquired a 49.9% stake in BBC America for $200m (GBP125m). BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of Britain's public broadcaster, which owns BBC America, will cede operational control of the cable channel to AMC. AMC will take over the affiliate and advertising sales of BBC America, which broadcasts shows including "Doctor Who," "Luther" and "Broadchurch," but will run the channel in line with the corporation's editorial standards.

Rapp has been served notice on Barclay's DM business and will have its workload shifted to an as yet undecided roster agency. Barclays appointed Rapp to its consolidated GBP11 million UK consumer DM account in October 2012 after a competitive pitch that was handled by the bank's procurement department. Bartle Bogle Hegarty, Dare and Maxus oversee Barclays' above-the-line, digital and media accounts, respectively, and are unaffected by the changes.

Pizza Hut UK is reviewing its creative agency requirements as it looks to revive its fortunes in the competitive casual-dining market. Activity will focus on the restaurant chain, which is owned by the private-equity company Rutland Partners, and its recent refurbishment. The delivery business is a separate entity owned by Yum! Brands. A spokeswoman for Pizza Hut said it was "making initial inquiries into potential new agencies for next year." She added: "No body of work has been assigned yet. It's in the very early stages."

Facebook paid no UK corporation tax for the second year in a row in 2013. The world's largest social media company reported a pre-tax loss of GBP11.6m in the UK last year, despite its US parent company reporting a net profit of $1.5bn (GBP900m). UK revenues rose from GBP34.6m to GBP49.8m, Facebook UK classifies its turnover as "marketing and engineering services," because much of the company's ad revenues are funnelled through Ireland to take advantage of much lower tax rates.