Spend on social advertising grew by 50% year-on-year during the final quarter of 2015. The channel's growth rate was six times that of search marketing, which noted an expenditure increase of just 8%, according to new research. Mobile was found to be the biggest driver of overall growth across both channels, accounting for almost all of the annual ad spend increase in paid search. The findings were outlined in Kenshoo's most recent Digital Marketing Snapshot study.

Aldi has made its first foray into online retail with the launch of a wine ecommerce site as it continues to take the fight to the big four supermarkets. The German discounter is investing GBP35m in launching its ecommerce presence, which has begun with the sale of wine and is set to be followed by non-food "Special buys" later in the year. Special buys include cycling wear, electrical items, clothing and camping equipment.

Customers have lost faith in TalkTalk following last year's data hack and its share of the market has plummeted as a result, according to the latest research from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. The cyber attack last October cost the company upwards of GBP35m in one off costs to resolve the immediate aftermath of some 15,600 leaked bank account numbers and sort codes. Kantar reports that in the fourth quarter of 2015, 7% of TalkTalk's broadband base turned away to a different provider.

Smartwatch and fitness band sales more than doubled in the UK in 2015, but a wearable technology "explosion" akin to mobile is still some way off. Brits bought 3m fitness bands and smartwatches last year, up 118% on 2014, according to data from Mintel covering the 12 months to September 2015. They still prefer fitness bands to smartwatches, since the devices have been on the market for longer and are cheaper. Brits bought 1.9m fitness bands in 2015, compared with 1.1m smartwatches.

ITV is investigating whether Dentsu Aegis Network has stuck to its deal to spend an agreed proportion of its clients' money with the broadcaster, Campaign can reveal. Tens of millions of pounds of ad spend could be at stake if ITV finds Dentsu Aegis has not fully met its obligations over several years. Dentsu Aegis, which is estimated to spend GBP300 million a year with ITV, believes it has done nothing wrong.

LinkedIn is looking for an agency to work on its social and digital advertising. Creativebrief is supporting LinkedIn with its search. Agencies have been contacted about the brief, but no meetings or pitches have yet been held. BMB works with LinkedIn in the UK on a project basis. It created a 2014 social media campaign, "what's your dream?", that comprised interviews of members. This week, LinkedIn announced that it has reached 20 million UK members.

Sky has bought the family Gold Spot at UK cinemas in a deal estimated at GBP3 million annually. This gives the pay-TV giant the final advertising slot before the screening of every film with a family audience. The first ad will focus on Sky's broadband offering. Sky declined to comment on the deal. It is currently preparing a major campaign to launch Sky Q, a premium connected TV service that will allow users to switch devices while watching a show.

Etihad Airways has appointed Lowe Open as its first global direct marketing agency after a competitive pitch. The shop, part of Mullen Lowe Group, will aim to improve Etihad's direct marketing activity and also work on Etihad Guest, the airline's frequent flyer initiative. Lowe Open will provide data and analytics services to Etihad Airways, Global Loyalty Company and Etihad Guest -- all part of Etihad Aviation Group. The three-year partnership will be led by the agency's Abu Dhabi office.

The Science Museum has drawn criticism for offering an "insulting" fee for ideas submitted as part of a competitive tender. Agencies will be paid GBP1,000 for a compliant tender and must submit three creative concepts, but have been told that the Science Museum Group will claim ownership of all IP within the tender. One agency chief executive told Campaign: "Frankly, it's insulting for them to offer GBP333.33 for each idea. Is that really what we're worth nowadays? We certainly won't be going for it."

Pearson, the world's biggest education publisher, has issued a profit warning amid a major restructuring programme that will involve 4,000 job cuts, or 10% of the workforce. The FTSE 100 company will also cap its dividend at 2015 levels, following a run of dire trading updates. It warned that operating profit in respect of the 2015 financial year was likely to total GBP720m, with adjusted earnings per share of 69p to 70p, down from a previous guidance of around 70-75p.