In this episode of The MadTech Podcast, Shiv Gupta, founder at U of Digital, joins ExchangeWire's John Still and Ciarán O'Kane to discuss the staggering ad fraud statistics, Meta's plan to introduce an ad-free tier in the EU and Microsoft finally sealing the deal with Activision.

Advertisers will spend $84 billion on ad fraud this year: report (Marketing Brew)

How do we put a stop to this? How can the industry get away from the vanity metrics that ad fraud offers?

According to a new report from Juniper Research, nearly a quarter of online marketing dollars will go to ad fraud in 2023.

This fraud comes at a cost of around £68bn ($84bn) in 2023, or about 22% of the £312bn ($382bn) spent on online advertising. The report estimates figures to be even higher for mobile, at around 30%.

Meta's Instagram, Facebook to charge EU users for ad-free service (Reuters)

Will users accept this and pay for an ad-free service? Can this help the tech giants get around privacy legislation?

According to people familiar with the matter, Meta Platforms is looking to introduce ad-free subscription plans for Instagram and Facebook users in Europe.

A €10 ($10.49/£8.64) per month plan seems a likely approach, and will be brought in over the coming months, said sources familiar with the matter.

Microsoft eyes closing its giant Activision Blizzard deal next week (The Verge)

Will the deal be worth the legal wrangling for Microsoft? How powerful does this deal make Microsoft in the gaming/advertising space?

It’s finally happening! Microsoft is planning to complete its £56.25bn ($68.7bn) proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard next week. A source familiar with Microsoft’s plans tells The Verge that the company has sights set on Friday October 13th as the closing date.

That date will still depend on the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority though, a regulator that blocked Microsoft’s deal earlier this year.

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