Source: Beet
Commerce media—ads sold directly by retailers like Amazon and Walmart—is consolidating advertiser budgets at the expense of traditional digital platforms, with eMarketer projecting it will command 25% of all digital ad spend. Brands now negotiate separately with first-party retail networks rather than buying reach through consolidated demand-side platforms, forcing agencies and marketing teams to rebuild workflows around multiple walled gardens. The consequence for Google and Meta is direct: if one-quarter of digital ad dollars flow to retail media networks, that's one-quarter fewer dollars available for search and social, restructuring which platforms control customer acquisition economics.