Publicis Groupe grew net revenue 4.8% on an organic basis in Q2 to reach $3.8 billion euros, or roughly $4.3 billion, according to an earnings statement. All major regions of business save the Middle and Africa were up during the quarter, with the U.S. and Europe — the ad-holding group’s two largest markets — growing 5.5% and 5.0%, respectively. The marketing services giant raised its full-year outlook slightly around the earnings, now forecasting lower-end growth of 4.5% versus a prior 4% while the top-end estimate remains at 5%.
Artificial intelligence remains a priority for Publicis as agencies across the board race to stay on the leading edge of the technology. Publicis’ AI-powered marketing services, including its intelligent creative and connected media practices, grew organic net revenue 6.5% in Q2.
The first half of the year was a busy one for the Sapient and Starcom owner, which got into a major spat — since resolved — with The Trade Desk over transparency and acquired data-collaboration platform LiveRamp for $2.2 billion. The LiveRamp deal has raised concern among industry stakeholders that have long valued the ad-tech firm for its neutrality. WPP, a major Publicis rival, last month indicated it would stop using LiveRamp following the deal’s completion.
Publicis views LiveRamp as an important piece of its push to build more sophisticated AI agents on behalf of clients and a way to bolster technology-led divisions like Epsilon, its data-marketing arm, and the transformation consultant Sapient. Sapient, which represents about 13% of Publicis’ total business, has been beset by growth challenges as clients become more cautious with their spend and declined in the mid-single digits in Q2.
“If you think that those clients won’t have to invest [capital expenditures] in their technology, in their data, in order to transform, you’re wrong,” Publicis CEO Arthur Sadoun said on the earnings call. “It will happen. When? I don’t know.”
When asked by investors about the rationale behind the LiveRamp acquisition, which is expected to close by the end of the year, executives declined to share much detail, but reinforced that client response to the news has been positive. LiveRamp recently launched an ad campaign aimed at executives that pitches the platform as a trustworthy partner for the AI era, Adweek reported.
“The truth is that for our clients, this is a non-event,” Sadoun said of the deal during a Q&A portion of the call, explaining that “LiveRamp technology is neutral by design.”
