Source: Adweek
Havas is pulling all spending from Google and YouTube in the United Kingdom, citing the desire to have more control of its inventory in hopes of keeping brands away from inappropriate or offensive content.
According to a report in The Guardian, the French advertising giant’s decision came after talks broke down related to Google’s inability to “provide specific reassurances” related to where video and display ads appear. The report cites content showing up in YouTube alongside videos of white nationalists and terrorists.
On Friday afternoon, a spokesperson for Havas confirmed the decision, explaining that the move is more of “short pause” than an indefinite stop.
“The decision of our UK team to pause activity with our partner Google is a temporary move made by the local team on behalf of our UK clients and their specific needs,” the spokesperson said in an email to Adweek. “The Havas Group will not be undertaking such measures on a global basis. We are working with Google to resolve the issues so that we can return to using this valuable platform in the UK.”
The news about Havas—which spends around 175 million euros annually on digital advertising clients in the U.K.—comes alongside a report that the British government and other organizations also pulled their ads from the tech giant.
In a statement, WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell also criticized Google and its rival, Facebook. (According to some estimates, Google and Facebook together receive around 85 percent of every new digital advertising dollar.)
“We have always said Google, Facebook and others are media companies and have the same responsibilities as any other media company,” Sorrell said in a statement emailed to Adweek. “They cannot masquerade as technology companies, particularly when they place advertisements. GroupM, which has led or supported every industry initiative to raise standards in the digital media supply chain, is talking to the digital media owners at the highest levels to encourage them to find answers to these brand safety issues.”
