Gray Media -- a firm that now serves 117 full-power television markets, reaching approximately 37% of U.S. television households -- has formed a strategic partnership with Madhive that will provide it access to Madhive’s AI-powered demand-side platform media platform that powers more than 50,000 campaigns per day, PPC Land reports. Gray can make use of Madhive's full platform, including Maverick AI and a new generation of the company’s Maverick AI Agents.

Netgear, a WiFi company, has filed a counterclaim against rival TP-Link, accusing it of false advertising, Toms Hardware reports. Netgear alleges that TP-Link’s 2024 reincorporation as a California company conceals that its R&D and manufacturing are done in China. Last year, TP-Link accused Netgear of orchestrating a smear campaign against it, Tom's Hardware reports.  It also claimed that Netgear’s statements breached a 2024 settlement that resulted in TP-Link paying Netgear $135 million to end long-running patent litigation. The court has dismissed parts of  TP-Link’s that were based on third-party statements. The U.S. Department of Defense last year added TP-Link to its …

HP Inc. has appointed Publicis Media as its global media agency following a competitive bidding process, HP announced, according to Guru Focus. This marks the end of a 17-year relationship with Omnicom Media Group. Publicis Media as its global media agency, marking the end of a 17-year partnership with Omnicom Media Group. The account is estimated at approximately $250 million. 

Nick Bilton, the new head of “60 Minutes,” has hired Kelly Funke, a TV production consultant, to help manage his transition, Reuters reports. One staffer said Funke’s role is to “fix the trust” with staff following newsroom turmoil. One staffer said Funke was brought in to “fix the trust” with staff, while another said Funke is serving as Bilton’s chief of staff. Funke has a 90-day contract with an option to renew.

Radial Entertainment has named Brendon Thomas as chief revenue officer, MediaPlayNews reports. Previously, Thomas was senior vice president of distribution and business development at Paramount Global. He is the second top Paramount executive to join Radial, following CEO Jeff Shultz, who had been Paramount Global’s chief strategy and business development officer. Thomas, who will report to Shultz, will lead revenue generation for Radial’s library, recent acquisitions and growing global content portfolio.  

Rematch, a grassroots sports media platform founded in 2017, has raised $3 million in a funding round, the goal being to fuel its international expansion and build its artificial intelligence capabilities, Pulse2 reports. Rematch has surpassed $1.2 million in annual revenue and has expanded from Europe to the US, where it has generated tens of millions of views. The company works with major sports organizations, youth sports groups and global brands.

Creative Artists Agency (CAA), said to be the world’s largest talent agency, is partnering with investment firm Integrated Media Company to launch a $250 million holding company to back creator economy businesses, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The new company, called Compound Creative Holdings, will be led by Tucker Brown as managing director. “Creators around the world are building full-fledged media companies with direct audience connections and true ownership of their intellectual property,” says Kevin Huvane, co-chairman of CAA. “Compound is built to fuel that momentum and reflects our commitment to helping creators amplify their impact.”

LinkedIn has debuted a team of marketing experts called BrandWorks that it expects to hit an annualized run rate of $100 million in the next fiscal year, Reuters reports. The goal is to deliver higher-performing ad campaigns for business advertisers such as software giant SAP and website hosting platform Webflow. Since launching BrandWorks internally in March, LinkedIn has increased the team’s size by 60%. 

News consumers who used artificial intelligence (AI) systems to verify facts were less able to detect misinformation when they stopped using AI chatbots, MIT Media Lab has found. By week four of the study, their performance had declined by 15%, although roughly 25% felt they were getting better after dropping AI. Often called the “AI dependency paradox,” this phenomenon has been observed in a wide range of knowledge domains, including medical.  

Pennsylvania legislators are considering a variety of measures to raise revenue, including a 5% tax on companies that sell digital advertising in the state, a measure that is moving through the house with bi-partisan support, WGAL reports. The tax would raise between $500 million and $900 million. Other ideas being considered are legalization of cannabis and regulation and taxing of skill games.