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Versant Reportedly Pursuing Vox Podcast Division

The New York Times reports that Versant, described as the parent company of MS NOW and CNBC, is among suitors exploring acquisition of Vox’s podcast division. Talks are said to be in early stages. Vox’s podcast network comprises nearly 40 shows; a purchase would expand Versant’s portfolio in audio and its political/news and sports/genre verticals. The ticker also summarizes media personnel and programming moves: MS NOW and C-SPAN plan coverage of nationwide No Kings protests; Rahel Solomon left CNN Early Start; Scott MacFarlane joined MeidasTouch as chief Washington correspondent and anchor; Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski extended contracts with MS NOW; CNBC reorganized reporter beats under editor in chief David Cho; Matt Brittin was named BBC director general; Alisyn Camerota debuts a new Scripps News series; and Geoff Bennett published a book titled "Black Out Loud."

Recap: Top 5 Marketing Topics of the Week

OnlineMarketing.de presents a weekly recap of five notable posts spanning search, social, and ad-tech topics. Google is testing a new SERP design that blends ads with organic results, potentially moving the ads label to the top-right and separating paid from organic with a fine divider, a change discussed by search expert Philipp Klöckner. A separate piece outlines 13 advanced AdWords optimization tricks, emphasizing bidding strategies, call campaigns, and the nuances of top-position ROI. A Stuttgart Media University study conducted with Twitter Deutschland surveys engagement marketing in Germany, featuring interviews with the two lead professors. An Instagram Hashtag Hack offers a time-saving technique to automate hashtag management across multiple accounts. Finally, an infographic on Snapchat examines the platform’s fundamentals and its marketing value for German marketers, highlighting reach and cost considerations.

Recap: Top 5 Topics of Last Week

OnlineMarketing.de's weekly Top-Five recap highlights five notable posts from the past week in social media marketing. The selections cover: Content Marketing fundamentals to boost user engagement; Facebook's test of a new 'Add a Link' button enabling users to share external links within the app, a move with potential implications for Google and publishers; a guide outlining four common landing page mistakes and practical improvement tips; Google's study reporting 54% video ad viewability across desktop and mobile, with differences by player and platform and higher visibility for YouTube in-video ads; and Bitly's affiliate cookies approach via a VigLink partnership to monetize shortened URLs. The piece also points readers to additional articles on topics like retargeting, customer experience, and social media strategy. Authored by Anton Priebe.