Industry experts told Digiday that Google’s policy change might spur more advertisers and agencies to explore such unusual targeting approaches. “I fully expect these experiments to continue,” said Jamie MacEwan, senior media analyst at Enders Analysis. He noted that, although it’s unclear now how many users might choose to enable cookies on their browsers, “the supply of cookie-enabled inventory will tighten.

"If OpenAI can deliver technology that matches its ambitious vision for what AI can be, it will be transformative for its own prospects, but also the economy more broadly," Hamish Low and other analysts at Enders Analysis wrote in a recent research note. "Falling short could be fatal." The stakes are high for OpenAI, which is facing off against a growing list of wealthy, big-spending rivals. The analysts added that staying at the cutting edge of AI was key to the startup justifying itself to the big tech backers on which it depended.

Karen Egan, a telecoms specialist at Enders Analysis, said that inflation-linked rises helped firms to offer competitive upfront deals to entice new customers and to make up for the fact that it had become harder to make profits in other areas. “Traditionally operators made their real profits from things such as roaming, international calls and out-of-contract pricing. Regulation has really chipped away at many of these, leaving operators with fewer and fewer ways to make money.”

Karen Egan at Enders Analysis said the losses would be a concern for investors. However, she added that the figures tended to be erratic and that alt-net gains were unlikely to be sustained over the longer term.

Amazon Prime Video has also signed a deal in several territories, including France, to broadcast NBA games. French fans will therefore have access to American basketball from 2025. "This is an indication that Amazon does not intend to stop in sports and could have even more appetite in Europe," notes François Godard. According to Enders' calculations, all sports combined, Amazon will spend "at least" 3.3 billion euros on an annual basis from 2025. "The platforms are present in all the major calls for tender, particularly in the United States, becoming direct competitors of traditional broadcasters," continues Christophe Lepetit.

Joseph Teasdale, head of tech at research firm Enders Analysis, told Business Insider that the site has "always had strong, active networks of high-powered professionals talking shop," despite the fact "it has never been a billion-user social network" like Instagram or Facebook. "X's staying power is a testament to the strength and value of these networks," he said. "The president's use of the service is a good example of how X has maintained its relevance."

Alice Enders, head of research at Enders Analysis, told the BBC while streaming has become popular, "the physical format never went away, as vinyl truly shows". "In Japan, the CD+DVD is still far ahead of digital because merchandise is a key part of the j-pop live experience and establishing a history at home is the ultimate homage," she said. "HMV is not the only supplier benefitting from this resurgence of the hard copy, also seen in books."

Tom Harrington, head of TV at Enders Analysis, said: “This has been happening for a while – The Inbetweeners and Peaky Blinders both experienced it – but there are more and more shows poking through. Virality plays a factor in the recommendation algorithm, which means total engagement can accelerate very quickly.“Obviously, though, the audience has to want the show. Netflix is definitely getting better at licensing UK programming that’s in line with what its audience desires.” “Almost all the growth of engagement for Netflix in the UK is coming from older viewers, meaning its audience is heading in the direction of broadcast television’s,” said Harrington. “So we can predict even more old broadcast shows will become belated hits on Netflix.”

“Responsible platform operators should gear algorithms towards accuracy and broader perspective rather than sensationalism,” said Jamie MacEwan, senior research analyst at Enders Analysis. “Those standards should also be expected of professional media output. Without these precautions, there is always the risk that platforms and the media themselves become part of the story.”

ITV was said to be charging firms £500,000 for one 30-second slot during half-time of England games, and the cost of the advertising space alone is likely to have set Adidas back more than £5m, before Jude Bellingham, the Beetles and any ad agencies the firm worked with received a single pound. All of which, Gill Hind, director of TV at Enders Analysis, says, means a bumper payday for ITV. “Suffice to say that ITV has had a huge Euro 2024 revenue boost, up by about 25 per cent plus year on year,” she tells City A.M.