Paid Media News (Week 28)
Demand Gen brings new choices for formats, bidding and creative
This July edition explored changes around Demand Gen, with consequences for teams managing display inventory or adapting existing creative assets.
A digest of the original edition. Updates and availability reflect what was reported at the time.
Google Display campaigns move into Demand Gen (Reminder)
As a reminder, Google is officially consolidating standalone Display campaigns into Demand Gen, which now spans YouTube, Discover, Gmail, Maps, and the Google Display Network. Channel controls let you adjust delivery across those surfaces, and a Display-only option remains during the transition, which Google expects to complete by 2027.
Read this update in detail →SMS joins the message assets in Google Ads
Google is testing the addition of SMS as a message asset, alongside WhatsApp, Messenger, and Zalo under "set up your message asset." It uses a native Google Messages preview, keeps the 140-character starter message, and rolls SMS conversions into the account-level leads-from-messages goal.
Read this update in detail →Demand Gen drops the data threshold for value bidding
Thomas Eccel has flagged that new Google Ads accounts can now set target ROAS and maximise conversion value bidding in Demand Gen without first meeting a data threshold. The bid-strategy settings layout was also updated.
Read this update in detail →Demand Gen adds Animated Images in beta
Google has added Animated Images in beta to Demand Gen, applying motion effects to static images, and it is on by default. The feature aims to lift static creative without new production.
Read this update in detail →Performance Max adds channel-level asset diagnostics
Google is testing Channel Diagnostics for Performance Max, found under Channel performance in Insights and reports. It shows diagnostic data across all channels and per channel, including which assets are missing or were not accepted, with fixes available from the same view.
Read this update in detail →A YouTube "subsequent views" conversion switches itself on
Manuel Lodi has flagged that after Google auto-linked Google Ads and YouTube accounts, it created a "YouTube subsequent views" conversion and set it as Primary. Because each organic view counts as a conversion, some Performance Max campaigns shifted most budget to the Video channel.
Read this update in detail →Google clarifies AI Max is an upgrade, not a new campaign type
Google has published an FAQ for AI Max for Search campaigns, describing it as an evolution of DSA and Performance Max rather than a separate campaign type. It sets out how AI Max differs from each, how assets are generated, and what changes when a campaign turns it on.
Read this update in detail →Search campaigns for Travel open a beta for things to do and events
Google is expanding Search campaigns for Travel to an open beta covering the things-to-do and events verticals. The beta adds AI Max features such as search-term matching and item groups, central buying across feed formats and text ads, and unified search-term reporting.
Read this update in detail →Google sunsets third-party rates for hotel ads
Google will stop serving third-party rates in Hotel Ads from 30 September 2026, after which affected campaigns will no longer run. Performance Max for Travel Goals continues to serve on Search, Display, and YouTube.
Read this update in detail →Merchant Centre Next becomes Google Merchant Centre
Google is dropping the "Next" name, so the platform you use today is now simply Google Merchant Centre. The change covers documentation, emails, and the interface, and rolls out over several weeks.
Read this update in detail →Google Shopping checkout links reach six more countries
Emmanuel Flossie has flagged that Google Shopping checkout links are now available in Indonesia, France, Mexico, Argentina, Israel, and Australia. The links send ready-to-buy shoppers straight to your cart or checkout on mobile and tablet devices, rather than to the product page.
Read this update in detail →Ads start rolling out inside AI Mode
Google has begun serving ads in AI Mode, with five formats now appearing: standard text ads, Shopping ads placed inline with organic results, and a product grid format. The rollout follows the formats Google previewed at Google Marketing Live.
Read this update in detail →Google tests a 3D animated product view in results
Khushal Bherwani has flagged Google testing a 3D product view that animates the product and returns it to its original position as the user scrolls. It adds motion to the product presentation in the results.
Read this update in detail →Bing labels a good time to buy using price history
Khushal Bherwani has flagged Bing analysing price history inside the product detail window and labelling some items as a good time to buy. The cue sits with the product before the shopper decides.
Read this update in detail →Google Ads lets advertisers label AI-generated creative
Google has published an AI-labelling update, effective July 2026, that lets advertisers add text or visual labels to AI-generated or modified image and video creative, with optional automatic labelling for Google AI assets. The labels do not breach overlay or watermark rules and roll out across Google Ads, Display & Video 360, Campaign Manager 360, Merchant Centre, and Ads Editor, in line with EU, India, and New York disclosure requirements.
Read this update in detail →Google clarifies acceptable ad formats in its alcohol policy
Google has updated its Alcohol policy help article to give clearer information on acceptable ad formats. Google states the update does not change how the policy is enforced.
Read this update in detail →Google speeds up Ads API Basic Access with brand verification
Google has launched a pilot that reviews pending Basic Access applications within hours once the linked Google Cloud project is brand verified. Participation is optional, and developers with approved tokens need not act.
Read this update in detail →ChatGPT Ads adds audiences and launches in Japan and South Korea
ChatGPT Ads has added audience targeting with advanced bid adjustments, plus custom audiences that let you upload lists of 25,000 or more users to target or exclude, with ad-group-level bid multipliers. OpenAI also added an Overview dashboard, suggested ad drafts built from your site's metadata, a smaller ad-card format, and availability in Japan and South Korea.
Read this update in detail →Search Console adds platform properties for social and video
Google is rolling out a new Search Console property type, "platform properties," letting you register Instagram, TikTok, X, or YouTube and see how that content performs in Google Search and Discover. It reports clicks, impressions, top posts, and the search terms that surface your social and video content.
Read this update in detail →Search Console adds a control to keep content out of AI features
Google has added a control in Search Console to include or exclude your site's content from AI features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode, under Settings and Search generative AI. Excluding removes all AI-feature visibility, and child properties inherit the parent setting.
Read this update in detail →Google Tag Manager adds a guided setup for Google Ads conversions
Vivek Gupta has flagged a new Guided Setup card in Google Tag Manager that auto-creates the tags, triggers, and variables for Google Ads purchase-conversion tracking, currently in beta. It aims to cut the manual steps behind a common setup.
Read this update in detail →Google Tag Manager fixes containers installed on the wrong path
Simo Ahava has flagged that Google Tag Manager now automatically restores full capabilities to containers installed on the /gtag/ path rather than /gtm/, which previously ran only Google tags. A GTM container ID (GTM-XXXX) in either snippet now unlocks all tags, while a Google tag ID, such as G- or AW-, still permits only Google tags.
Read this update in detail →Microsoft Clarity launches Topic Insights
Microsoft Clarity has launched Topic Insights, a topic-level view in its AI Visibility dashboard that shows how your content shapes AI answers, covering visibility, influence, competition, and opportunities. Announced on 9 July, it runs on prompts you define per topic, with a weekly report cap per project.
Read this update in detail →BigQuery adds multi-level aggregation
Google has added multi-level aggregation to BigQuery SQL, letting you nest one aggregate function inside another in a single query, as flagged by Luka Cempre on the GA4 export. It removes the subquery workarounds analysts used for aggregate-of-aggregate calculations.
Read this update in detail →Meta adds a Grouping view to Ads Manager
Meta has added a Grouping option in Ads Manager that clusters campaigns by objective, bid strategy, delivery, budget, and business goal; this feature is still rolling out. It gives a faster way to read a large account by structure rather than a flat list.
Read this update in detail →Meta ships five ad updates, including its own image model
Meta has rolled out five changes across the Business Agent, reporting, and creative. For you, this means more automation and AI in the ad-creation flow, so review each before it touches live campaigns.
Read this update in detail →LinkedIn Ads adds company size, revenue, and device targeting
Anthony Blatner has flagged new LinkedIn Ads targeting options rolling out this month: more granular company-size bands, company revenue ranges, and device-type targeting. Some are live now, others are ramping up.
Read this update in detail →TikTok prompts an ad-free subscription feed
Lucy Guest has flagged that TikTok now offers users an ad-free For You feed for a monthly fee, following YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. Users who pay opt out of the ad inventory.
Read this update in detail →Amazon drops the seller-performance gate on the Featured Offer
Amazon is removing seller performance as an eligibility requirement for the Featured Offer (Buy Box) from July 2026, rolling it out globally through year-end and automatically pulling in existing offers. The model shifts from gate-then-rank to rank-only, so chargeback rate, order-defect data, and customer complaints become ranking inputs alongside price and delivery, rather than serving as qualifying filters.
Read this update in detail →Amazon retires its Sponsored Ads reports for unified reporting
Amazon is discontinuing its legacy Sponsored Ads reports: no new reports after 17 December 2026, and the reports page is removed on 31 December 2026, with everyone moved to unified reporting. Custom templates, Excel exports, and older API endpoints tied to the old reports will stop working.
Read this update in detail →Amazon opens Q4 deal submissions with bulk creation
Amazon has opened deal submissions for Prime Big Deal Days and Black Friday Week in Seller Central, with a new bulk-create tool to set up deals across marketplaces at once. Early deadlines carry a discount: submit Prime Big Deal Days deals by 5 August and Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals by 5 September to save on the per-deal fee.
Read this update in detail →Microsoft launches Frontier to embed AI engineers with customers
Microsoft has announced Frontier, a new unit committing about $2.5bn and 6,000 engineers to embed AI specialists inside customer organisations. The stated aim is to move companies from stalled AI pilots to production outcomes.
Read this update in detail →Gemini gains ground on ChatGPT
Vladimir Hanzlik has flagged Similarweb data showing Gemini's share of combined Gemini and ChatGPT website visits rising from under a quarter in December 2025 to more than a third by June 2026. ChatGPT still leads on total visits.
Read this update in detail →Google publishes a leaders' brief on retail peak in the AI era
Google has released a leaders' brief and livestream on preparing for the retail peak season in the AI era. It features practitioner panels and research on what Google calls the "AI winning mindset" for growth.
Read this update in detail →Google shows AI Overviews on brand queries
Chris Long has flagged Google now showing AI Overviews on brand queries, drawing from sources such as LinkedIn and news articles. Brand searches that once returned a clean listing may now open with an AI summary.
Read this update in detail →The EU adds a €3 per-item fee on low-value parcels
Mike Ryan has flagged that, from 1 July, the EU will apply a €3 fee per item to low-value packages that were previously exempt under de minimis rules, affecting marketplaces such as Temu and SHEIN. The UK still allows de minimis, so some sellers may shift budget there.
Read this update in detail →The EU advances its "Chat Control" message-scanning rules
The European Parliament has passed a version of the "Chat Control" regulation that allows platforms to scan private messages, images, and files, with the regime set to run until at least April 2028. End-to-end encrypted services such as WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram are exempt from the scanning.
Read this update in detail →OpenAI launches ChatGPT Work
OpenAI has introduced ChatGPT Work, powered by Codex and GPT-5.6, which can act across a team's apps and files and run multi-hour workflows from research through to documents, presentations, and reports. It positions ChatGPT as an agent that returns finished work rather than answers.
Read this update in detail →GPT-5.6 rolls into Microsoft 365 Copilot
Jack Rowbotham has flagged that OpenAI's GPT-5.6 model family is rolling out in Microsoft 365 Copilot across Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Chat, and Cowork. Copilot may select it automatically, and users can pick it in the model selector where available.
Read this update in detail →The advertiser takeaway
Audit delivery channels, bidding options and generated creative together. A familiar asset can appear differently when campaign settings or platform defaults change.
Explore the original edition
Every update from this edition is linked above. Explore the original newsletter for its full context, contributor credits and reporting links.
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