News in brief: UK Festive Season Ad Spend Expected to Hit £10.5bn; Apple to Face First EU Fine Under DMA; UK Gov Testing AI Chatbot 

UK Festive Season Ad Spend Expected to Hit £10.5bn 

UK advertisers are expected to spend £10.5bn during this year’s festive season, according to new data from the Advertising Association and WARC. The predicted figure would break the current record, marking an increase of 7.8% from last year’s ad spend during the period which reached a total of £9.7bn. Online media channels are expected to see a boost, with online display expected to rise 15.8%. Online radio is predicted to see an increase of 8.8.%, while broadcaster video on demand is expected to grow by 7.8%. Out of home advertising should see positive results too, with a rise of 8.1% forecasted. 

Apple to Face First EU Fine Under DMA

As a consequence of its App Store practices, Apple is set to face the first fine imposed by the new regulations of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act. According to individuals familiar with the matter, the penalty is being readied after the tech titan failed to allow app developers to steer users to cheaper deals and offers outside of its App Store, reports Bloomberg. The fine is expected to be dealt out before the end of the year. The decision is still being drafted by the European Commission, although the fine could reportedly be accompanied by period penalty payments which would force Apple to continue making payments until it complies with the legislation. 

UK Gov Testing AI Chatbot 

Meanwhile in the UK, the government is pushing forward with the trial of an experimental generative AI chatbot which sets out to make it easier for businesses across the country to locate information and get help and advice from GOV.UK. Following earlier trials which showed user satisfaction for over two-thirds, the chatbot will now be tested by up to 15,000 business users. GOV.UK details that the “move comes as the Science Secretary commits to experiment with new technologies to improve government services, in a bid to slash the amount of time citizens spend on bureaucracy.”