'Thinking along the wrong trajectory': Digital media mergers won't solve the duopoly problem

[Digiday Daily] [Mergers between top digital media companies such as BuzzFeed, Group Nine Media](and Refinery29 are unlikely to happen anytime soon -- and are not the answer to solving business problems related to Google and Facebook. For Digiday+ members: [The buzz around blockchain's use in advertising is subsiding](, leading to issues for businesses built entirely around the ledger-based technology. The North Face has thousands of retail outlets across the world - including third-party retailers, stores and outlets - but right now, all eyes are on just one: [a Brooklyn location that checks all the boxes of so-called modern physical retail.]( Quartz has used artificial intelligence technology to help it promote articles through its AI-enabled chatbots. [Now the publication is looking to incorporate computers more in the reporting of those articles.]( Time's running out to connect one-on-one with PepsiCo, Delta and Amazon at the Digiday Video Marketing Summit next week. [Register]( now to join us and find out how they're making their video investments work.   ['Thinking along the wrong trajectory': Digital media mergers won't solve the duopoly problem]( Sahil Patel BuzzFeed, Group Nine Media and other big digital publishers are floating the idea of merging to get better terms from Google and Facebook. It won’t work. [The buzz around blockchain as antidote to digital media's ills is fading]( Seb Joseph Blockchain proved to be far more complicated than the ad industry and now disillusionment has set in. Advertisement   [TV viewability in the age of the distracted viewer]( Sponsored Content Viant Television viewers today are more distracted than ever, with the average U.S. household containing 13 connected devices competing for viewers' attention. Marketers agree (86 percent of them, in fact) that it's harder to capture consumer attention through TV alone, so how do you break through the noise? Sponsored by Viant. [Retail Briefing: The North Face takes a stab at a 'retail lab']( Hilary Milnes The North Face has thousands of retail outlets across the world, but right now, all eyes are on just one. [Quartz forms Quartz AI Studio with $250k grant from Knight Foundation]( Tim Peterson Backed by a Knight Foundation grant, Quartz’s two-person AI team plans to collaborate with other publishers for half of the stories it will produce. [Brand RX part two: The state of brand safety one year later]( Sponsored Content GumGum It’s been a year since we’ve surveyed our audience about the state of brand safety in digital media. Since then, marketers, publishers, social platforms and tech providers have worked overtime to help brands avoid unfortunate adjacencies. Complete the survey and you’ll receive a $5 Starbucks gift card. Sponsored by GumGum. [The three major trends media companies must embrace]( Sponsored Content Brightspot Quality content is the foundation of success for media companies, but that content means nothing unless those companies optimize their distribution, personalization and new revenue opportunities across every channel. Get the guide. Sponsored by Brightspot. Advertisement     [Events Title]   November 22, 2018 [Digiday Hot Topic: Media Buying in the Age of Transparency]( London   November 27 - 29, 2018 [Digiday Brand Summit Europe]( Monte Carlo   November 28 - 30, 2018 [Digiday Video Marketing Summit]( Nashville, TN     [ALL EVENTS](     You received this email because you’re a member of the Digiday community [Digiday Media]( 1 Liberty Plaza New York, Ny 10006 [Change your email preferences or unsubscribe]( [Forward this email]( to a friend Did someone forward this to you? [Subscribe here.](. ` [Unsubscribe from all Digiday emails](