#media-business-expansion

#media-business-expansion

Regulators are paying more attention to data privacy because their constituents consider it a 'kitchen table' issue, highlighting its importance in everyday life.

"They have been more successful than anyone including themselves could have anticipated," said Nick Giles, a senior research analyst at B. Riley Securities who covers several of the firms, most of which are public.

Leonid Radvinsky's death leaves a void in the leadership of OnlyFans, a platform that has transformed the adult content landscape. His secretive management style and the controversies surrounding the site have raised questions about its future direction and stability.

The UK digital entertainment sector hit £13.5 billion in revenue in 2025, reflecting a 7.1% year-over-year growth, significantly outpacing the general economy's growth rate of 1.3%.

Social platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Facebook offer huge opportunities for marketers. They are the new de facto gatekeepers to huge audiences, and there are very few other means to reach younger audiences at scale with ease. But that access comes with trade-offs, and different platforms emerge and disappear rapidly. As part of our Predictions season, The Drum Network seeks to examine where brands and agencies fit into that environment.

Speaking of Google, the search giant unveiled the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP): a new open standard for AI agent-based shopping. Developed in collaboration with companies including Shopify, Etsy, Wayfair, Target and Walmart, the protocol is designed to allow AI agents to operate across multiple stages of the customer journey, from product discovery through to post-purchase support, without requiring separate agent connections for each function.