Omnicom is buying Interpublic Group in a stock-for-stock deal that will create an advertising powerhouse with combined annual revenue of almost $26 billion.
The companies have had a hand in iconic marketing campaigns like °®¶¹appœGot Milk°®¶¹app for the California Milk Processor Board, °®¶¹appœPriceless°®¶¹app for Mastercard, °®¶¹appœBecause I°®¶¹app™m Worth It°®¶¹app for L°®¶¹app™Oreal and °®¶¹appœThink Different°®¶¹app for Apple. The combined company will be worth more than $30 billion. Shares of Interpublic jumped more than 15% before the opening bell Monday, while Omnicom°®¶¹app™s stock fell more than 2%.
Taylor Swift°®¶¹app™s Eras Tour shatters own record, grosses $2.2 billion
Taylor Swift°®¶¹app™s Eras Tour brought in approximately $2.2 billion in its nearly two-year run, making it the highest-grossing tour of all time for a second year in a row.
That°®¶¹app™s according to Pollstar estimates from data collected across 149 shows and provided to The Associated Press on Monday.
Last year, Swift°®¶¹app™s landmark Eras Tour became the first to cross the billion-dollar mark. In North America, Swift°®¶¹app™s tour earned an estimated $1.04 billion. Globally, that number jumps to an estimated $2.2 billion. Pollstar data is pulled from box office reports, venue capacity estimates, historical Pollstar venue ticket sales data, and other undefined research, collected from November 2022 to December 2024.
Meta shareholders seek sanctions in emails case
Attorneys for Meta shareholders are asking a Delaware judge to sanction former Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg and fellow Facebook board member and current White House chief of staff Jeff Zients for deleting emails related to the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal.
The plaintiffs say Sandberg and Zients used personal email accounts to communicate about key issues relating to their 2018 shareholder lawsuit alleging that Facebook official failed for years to protect the privacy of user data.
The plaintiffs say the former board members were either °®¶¹appœreckless or intentional°®¶¹app in destroying documents, even after being told to preserve records for litigation purposes.
A defense attorney argued Monday that there was no intent or °®¶¹appœgrand scheme°®¶¹app to destroy relevant documents.
Chinese leaders plan to loosen monetary policy to help economy
China°®¶¹app™s top leaders have pledged to loosen monetary policy and provide more support for the slowing economy.
Shares in Hong Kong jumped Monday after state media released a report on the meeting by the ruling Communist Party°®¶¹app™s Politburo. That gathering sets the tone for an annual economic planning meeting later in the week to reaffirm policies for the coming year.
Also Monday, Premier Li Qiang slapped back at threats of more tariffs on Chinese exports, saying such moves are an obstacle for the global economy. Li was speaking at a meeting with the heads of the World Bank and other big international financial groups.
Onion°®¶¹app™s bid to buy Infowars goes before judge
The Onion°®¶¹app™s bid to buy conspiracy theorist Alex Jones°®¶¹app™ Infowars has returned to a Texas courtroom. A federal judge in Houston is hearing arguments Monday on whether a bankruptcy auction was run properly as Jones alleges collusion and fraud. The hearing was expected to continue into Tuesday. The Onion satirical news outlet was named the winning bidder last month over a company affiliated with Jones. The auction was held to help pay nearly $1.5 billion in defamation judgments that Jones was ordered to pay families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. The families won lawsuits against Jones for calling the shooting a hoax.
