Semify, a white-label digital marketing software platform specialising in Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Paid Search Advertising (PPC), Paid Social Advertising, and AI Optimization (AIO), has announced the acquisition of Dragon Metrics, an international SEO/AI/PPC reporting software platform based in Hong Kong. The strategic acquisition significantly expands Semify’s global measurement capabilities and accelerates its AI optimization offerings. Dragon Metrics, founded in 2011 by Simon Lesser (CEO and co-founder) and Richard Mabey (Advisor and co-founder), has built a reputation as the premier SEO platform for international markets. In addition to support for Google and AI platforms, Dragon Metrics also offers comprehensive support for massive non-Google markets including China, Korea, and Japan. The platform currently serves multinational companies and global agencies across more than 50 countries.
JOLT is expanding its London footprint with 30 new premium digital out-of-home (DOOH) sites across the Royal Borough of Greenwich, under a 15-year partnership with Greenwich Council its renewable-powered network will be extended into South East London. The double-sided D6s will be installed in high-footfall urban locations delivering broadcast-scale reach alongside the 57‑minute average dwell time of drivers at JOLT’s EV chargers, resulting in a captive, highly engaged audience. Each site will reach two valuable audiences: EV drivers actively charging and passing pedestrians and traffic. The combination delivers sequential storytelling opportunities that outperform traditional roadside formats. Campaigns are planned and optimised through Spark Intelligence, JOLT’s proprietary platform that enables impression-based planning and real-time campaign optimisation. Meanwhile, anonymised first-party data from the JOLT app provides insights into engagement, dwell time and attribution. Powered entirely by 100% renewable energy and funded by advertising, JOLT’s network enables drivers to charge up to 30 miles for free per day while giving brands an authentically sustainable, high-attention DOOH environment.
UK online marketplace Gumtree has announced a strategic multi-year partnership with ShipStation, the leading shipping and logistics solution. This marks a key milestone as the platform transitions from a primarily offline service into a fully transactional online marketplace. The partnership will see Gumtree implement ShipStation’s API to seamlessly integrate delivery functionality, which allows sellers to easily ship products directly via their website. For the first time, sellers can manage delivery directly within Gumtree through its integration with ShipStation’s API, which provides a single connection to a wide range of carriers, enabling carrier performance management, powering automated label creation, and real-time tracking.
Online marketplaces dominate almost every stage of the UK purchase journey, from discovery and comparison through to purchase, reviews and even returns, according to recent research from Akeneo, the Product Experience (PX) company and provider of Product Information Management (PIM) solutions. For high-value purchases over £90, UK shoppers lean more heavily on marketplaces than any other digital or physical touchpoint. For instance, 24% most regularly use marketplaces for search and discovery. 26% use them for price and promotions comparisons and 28% use them to compare or validate products, both top-ranked channels. In addition, 26% use them most often to leave reviews while 21% turn to marketplaces for advice from other users, more than social media. When it comes to purchase, 30% most regularly use marketplaces to buy the product – ahead of stores and retailer sites while 21% use marketplaces to initiate returns, second only to other routes (22%). Across the whole journey, 30% of UK consumers say they most often buy from online marketplaces, while just 6% most often buy from a brand’s own website.
With Christmas fast approaching, new research from Uswitch Broadband reveals how UK parents are navigating digital boundaries at home and the challenges that come with it. While 37% of parents want to reduce their children’s screen time over the festive period, a striking 87% feel pressured to buy tech gifts such as tablets, smartwatches, games consoles, or TVs[1]. This begs the question: Is technology dulling the Christmas magic? 66% of parents support the proposed two-hour social media limit for children. One in five parents (21%) say their child spends between one and three hours a day on social platforms; 12% spend three hours or more daily. The biggest challenges parents face are: monitoring their child’s activity (35%), resistance from children (32%) and the use of multiple devices or accounts (32%).
Target Darts, a global leader in darts innovation, is launching its campaign ‘From Target to Trophy’ in collaboration with Sky Media, the advertising arm of Sky. The campaign coincides with the start of the PDC World Darts Championship, exclusively live on Sky Sports, where Luke Littler commences his title defence. Darts sensation Littler has been using Target Darts since he was 12 years old and the creative, produced by All Things Creative Studio (Not Normal Group), celebrates his story from playing in his bedroom to triumph on the world stage. To build anticipation and drama, the creative features commentary from Sky Sports’ Dan Dawson. Running across Sky Media’s TV, digital, and social platforms, the campaign has been crafted to make meaningful connections with both current and future darts fans. The TV activity, includes a 30” TVC around Darts content and an addressable AdSmart campaign that targets dedicated Darts viewers across the Sky Media network. On Digital, Target are running high-impact display and video assets around Darts content across SkySports.com and App, YouTube, X, Instagram and Facebook. In addition, to drive further impact and conversion, 20” pre-rolls will run before Sky Sports content that’s syndicated to relevant audiences on trusted 3rd party sites via Sky Publisher Player.
Surveying 500 UK and US directors on what will shape AI adoption in 2026, monday.com’s latest World of Work report reveals that 78% of UK directors do not expect AI to reduce headcount within their teams next year – and almost a third (32%) actually expect to hire more because of it. For UK organisations, the debate is no longer about whether to use AI. 95% of UK directors use AI at work, 80% use it daily, and 70% consider themselves advanced or expert users. The focus has shifted to the quality of that use: how tools connect, how reliable they are, how teams build capability, and where automation sits in everyday workflows. With national policy pushing for AI-driven productivity gains, directors are clear that the priority is no longer to “try” AI, but to design how their business – and importantly, their people – run with it. UK directors say stronger, more connected tools will unlock the next phase of productivity. Many leaders currently mix approved and unapproved tools – 56% admit to using both – and the same proportion frequently move between multiple AI platforms to get work done. This creates friction – and directors say systems must catch up.
Magnite, the largest independent sell-side advertising company, today announced Channel 4 Sales is leveraging Magnite’s streamr.ai technology to power the broadcaster’s newly launched Smart Ad Engine service. Channel 4 Sales is the advertising arm of Channel 4, the fastest-growing major commercial streamer in the UK, while Smart Ad Engine is Channel 4’s comprehensive service that combines generative AI, Magnite’s streamr.ai technology, and the broadcaster’s human-led campaign management and creative teams. Brands can go live with high-impact TV ads quickly and cost-effectively while ensuring the ads are fully compliant with Clearcast guidelines and Channel 4’s rigorous creative and ethical standards.
Analytics platform, Amplitude, is introducing automated insights, an AI analytics tool that doesn’t explain what has happened, but rather why it has happened. The tool mirrors how expert analysts investigate product changes, demonstrating what the real drivers are behind metric shifts and eliminating hours of manual work. This tool is the first AI analytics system that is purpose built for causal reasoning rather than trend detection, replacing manual anomaly investigations with end to end analysis of experiments and campaigns. The tool also encodes real analyst workflows learned from thousands of teams which makes advanced analysis accessible even to non experts.
European digital advertising platform Azerion announced the results of its high-performing programmatic omnichannel strategy for luxury fragrance brand Maison El Nabil. Using Azerion’s HAWK DSP in partnership with outdoor specialist Hypermedia and AiOO’s real-time audience intelligence infrastructure for out-of-home (OOH), intent to purchase increased 23 points to reach 41% among people who remembered seeing the ads. Overall intent to purchase reached 18% but jumped to 30% among those exposed to DOOH alone. Awareness was up 8 points among audiences exposed to the ads and recalling them, taking it to 15% and 70% of respondents exposed to both channels perceived the brand as ’Affordable Luxury’, reflecting the core rebranding message.
No longer having to wrestle with their own delivery choices, consumers are set to benefit from Gumtree’s recently announced strategic multi-year partnership with shipping and logistics solution ShipStation. This marks a key milestone as the platform transitions from a primarily offline service into a fully transactional online marketplace. The partnership will see Gumtree implement ShipStation’s API so sellers can manage delivery directly within Gumtree through its integration with ShipStation’s API. Sellers will have a single connection to a wide range of carriers, enabling carrier performance management, powering automated label creation, and real-time tracking.
