The FTC has permitted a revised remaining consent order tied to Omnicom’s $13.5 billion acquisition of Interpublic Group (IPG), explicitly stopping the corporate from denying advert {dollars} to publishers based mostly on political or ideological viewpoints—until a shopper expressly directs it.
In June, the FTC conditionally cleared the take care of a proposed consent decree barring politically motivated advert boycotts. That order is now remaining, with added oversight and a clarification of scope.
After a compulsory public remark interval, the FTC revised the order so as to add a compliance monitor and be sure that the restrictions solely apply inside the USA. The fee voted 2-0-1 to approve the order, with Commissioner Mark R. Meador recused.
The FTC mentioned promoting holding firms, together with via trade commerce teams, have at instances coordinated boycotts of sure media websites, chopping off their advert income and weakening their capability to supply content material.
The order bars Omnicom from preserving exclusion lists or ideology-based blocklists until a selected advertiser asks for one—placing the choice again within the arms of its shoppers.
The merger additionally cleared a key U.Ok. evaluate final month, when the Competitors and Markets Authority declined to escalate the deal to a phase-two probe. The European Union stays among the many regulators nonetheless reviewing the transaction.
Omnicom and IPG had already been underneath scrutiny by the FTC, which issued a second info request earlier within the yr, signaling deeper antitrust evaluate.
IPG’s Q2 income fell yr over yr, however its margin hit a document excessive because it reduce prices in anticipation of the merger. Omnicom continues to anticipate the deal to shut within the second half of 2025.
The choice reveals regulators are paying nearer consideration to how promoting holding firms use their market energy in ways in which might affect the movement of promoting {dollars} on-line.
