Paid Media & Biddable Industry Update

What January’s Changes Mean for Your Brand

January brought a series of platform updates that signal where paid media is heading in 2026: closer links between brand exposure and measurable sales, heavier use of automation and AI, and better tools for understanding how different channels work together.

Across Google, Meta, TikTok and LinkedIn, the message is consistent. Platforms are making it easier to test, automate, and scale, but they are also increasing competition in auctions. That makes data quality, creative quality and budget decisions more important than ever.

Here’s what changed, why it matters, and what advertisers should be thinking about next.

Google is introducing tools to plan and measure performance across channels

Impacts for brands

Budget decisions increasingly need to be made across channels, not in isolation. Performance in one channel may depend on investment in another, making siloed optimisation less effective.

What happened

Google Analytics released three beta features: cross-channel budgeting with scenario planning, improved Google Ads conversion management, and an advanced attribution analysis report. These tools help forecast outcomes and understand how credit is shared across the funnel.

Why this matters

These changes push advertisers away from channel-by-channel thinking and towards a full-funnel view of spend and performance. Decisions about budgets, bids and optimisation can now be based on how channels work together, not just last-click results.

What advertisers should do

• Ensure Google Ads is fully linked to GA4 and explore the new budgeting and attribution reports
• Use scenario planning to model how shifting the budget between channels may affect outcomes
• Align bidding strategies with deeper attribution insights to avoid over- or under-investing in individual channels

Threads has rolled out globally as a paid advertising channel

Impacts for brands

Brands have access to additional paid reach within Meta’s ecosystem, but this also introduces more competition for attention. How and where budgets are allocated across Meta placements will have a greater impact on efficiency.

What happened

Meta completed the global rollout of ads on Threads, allowing brands to run image, video, 4:5 and carousel ads through Meta Ads Manager. Threads now sits alongside Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, with a reported audience of around 400 million users.

Why this matters

Threads is no longer experimental. It is now a formal paid placement, increasing available inventory and scale across Meta campaigns. As adoption grows, auction dynamics and pricing are likely to evolve.

What advertisers should do

• Include Threads placements in Advantage+ or manual campaigns to expand reach
• Test formats early to understand performance relative to Feed and Reels
• Monitor CPMs and competition as demand on the platform increases

TikTok is blending automation with greater advertiser control

Impacts for brands

Campaigns can be launched and scaled more quickly, but results still depend heavily on creative quality and brand oversight. Automation improves efficiency, not outcomes, without strong inputs.

What happened

TikTok enhanced Smart+ campaigns with automated creative selection, improved previews, draft modes and bulk editing tools. These updates combine AI-led optimisation with more traditional manual controls.

Why this matters

These features reduce friction when launching and scaling campaigns while helping advertisers make better creative decisions before spend goes live. The balance of automation and control is particularly important for maintaining brand standards while benefiting from algorithmic optimisation.

What advertisers should do

• Use automated creative recommendations to improve relevance and reduce wasted spend
• Take advantage of preview and draft tools to quality-check campaigns before launch
• Balance automation with manual inputs to protect brand consistency

Paid media competition is increasing as AI drives growth

Impacts for brands

As more advertisers adopt AI-driven bidding and management, competition in auctions is intensifying. Maintaining efficiency will rely more on data quality, targeting signals and creative strength than on manual bid adjustments.

What happened

Industry projections point to continued growth in digital ad spend through 2026, driven by AI innovation and increasingly automated campaign management. Coverage also highlighted legal and regulatory tensions, alongside rapid ad tech development at global industry events.

Why this matters

Rising spend and AI-driven optimisation increase bid pressure, particularly in competitive categories. At the same time, changes in regulation or platform behaviour may affect targeting signals and bidding mechanics.

What advertisers should do

• Expect bid inflation and refine audience and conversion signals to maintain efficiency
• Invest in AI-ready creative and measurement tools that feed automated bidding systems with strong data
• Stay alert to regulatory developments that may influence targeting or platform performance

TV-style ads are becoming directly shoppable

Impacts for brands

Upper-funnel activity is becoming easier to measure against real sales outcomes. For e-commerce brands in particular, TV-style exposure is no longer just about awareness; it can now be directly tied to purchasing behaviour.

What happened

Google launched Shoppable YouTube ads on connected TVs (CTV). Viewers can now browse and buy products directly from ads shown on their TV screens.

Google also introduced Campaign Mix Experiments (in beta), allowing advertisers to test different campaign types and budget splits within a single experiment.

Why this matters

Shoppable CTV shortens the gap between awareness and purchase. What was traditionally “brand” inventory can now drive direct, trackable commerce outcomes.

Campaign Mix Experiments reduce guesswork by allowing advertisers to test which combinations of Search, Performance Max, Shopping and Video actually deliver results, rather than manually inferring performance changes.

What advertisers should do

• Test shoppable CTV formats if you have e-commerce feeds and upper-funnel or demand-generation budgets
• Use Campaign Mix Experiments to validate budget allocation decisions instead of relying on intuition
• Monitor how bids and budgets shift during experiments to refine automated bidding strategies

What This Means For Your Paid Media Strategy

Across platforms, January’s updates reinforce a clear trend: paid media is becoming more automated, more interconnected and more competitive. Success increasingly depends on feeding platforms the right inputs, high-quality data, clear conversion signals and strong creative, rather than micromanaging bids in isolation.

For brands, that means smarter testing, better measurement and clearer decisions about where budgets genuinely drive value.