Media-Saturn-Holding GmbH vs Otto Group

Carsten Schwecke to Lead Retail Media at MediaMarktSaturn

Carsten Schwecke, formerly Chief Commercial Officer at RTL Deutschland and previously head of marketing at Seven.One Entertainment Group, will become co-CEO and Managing Director of MediaMarktSaturn Marketing GmbH on November 1, 2026, leading the retail media and partner marketing unit jointly with CMO Michael Schuld. Schwecke focuses on expanding first-party data activation, offsite media, and the publisher business, broadening the growth strategy beyond retail media and partner marketing. He succeeds Boris Prondzinski and Torsten Ahlers, who are leaving amicably; Ahlers supports the handover until January 31, 2027. In fiscal year 2024/25, retail media revenue reached around 91 million euros, up from about 5 million three years earlier. For offsite expansion, MediaMarktSaturn partners with Unlimitail.

• Carsten Schwecke becomes co-CEO and Managing Director of MediaMarktSaturn Marketing GmbH on November 1, 2026, alongside CMO Michael Schuld.
• Schwecke previously held leadership roles at RTL Deutschland, Seven.One Entertainment Group, and Axel Springer.
• He will focus on first-party data activation, offsite media, and expanding the publisher business as part of a broader growth strategy.

Vienna AI Startup Acquires Texas Sports Nutrition Platform

Vienna-based AI startup Wictory is acquiring The Sports Nutrition Playbook, a Texas service platform founded by dietitian Amy Goodson. The deal gives Wictory access to over 30 sports dietitians and an insurance-billable business model, accelerating its U.S. market entry, particularly into youth sports. The transaction is framed as a merger but operationally Wictory leads, with all existing shareholders staying on board. Wictory will change its domain from Wictory.ai to Wictory.com. Amy Goodson becomes chief nutrition officer. The acquisition is financed through a follow-on round from existing investors, including ski world champion Michael Walchhofer. Wictory, founded in 2024, is a digital coaching platform using agentic AI to process wearable and nutrition data, with dietitians providing clinical judgment. The company recently joined AI:AT Factory and Plug and Play Sportstech accelerator to support U.S. expansion.

• Wictory, a Vienna-based AI startup, is acquiring The Sports Nutrition Playbook, a Texas-based service platform.
• The acquisition brings over 30 sports dietitians and an insurance-billable business model to Wictory.
• Amy Goodson, founder of The Sports Nutrition Playbook, becomes chief nutrition officer of the combined company.

MediaMarktSaturn Makes Cologne Blueprint for Tech Villages

MediaMarktSaturn opened a new Tech Village on Cologne’s Hohe Straße on 27 August 2026, converting the former Saturn store into a more-than-6,000 sqm, five‑floor experiential location that combines retail, brand boutiques, digital experience zones, services, gastronomy and gaming. Cologne is the retailer’s third Tech Village in Germany (after Berlin and Hamburg) and the tenth in Europe; the new store design developed there is intended as a template for future European rollouts. The location includes 31 brand boutiques, dedicated themed areas, a fully digital 3D experience world, and Xperion’s relocated gaming arena (70+ gaming stations, a ~200-seat arena). The store is tightly integrated with omnichannel and local logistics, offering same-day delivery for large items and partnerships with Uber and Wolt for fast local fulfillment.

• MediaMarktSaturn opened a Tech Village on Cologne’s Hohe Straße on 27 August 2026.
• The former Saturn store was converted into a more-than-6,000 square meter, five-floor experiential Tech Village.
• Cologne is MediaMarktSaturn’s third Tech Village in Germany and tenth across Europe; the Cologne store design will be used as a template for future Tech Villages.

OTTO: Mit ChatGPT-Plugin und -Ads zur Agentic Readiness

OTTO is advancing its e-commerce platform for AI-driven shopping. With its tech partner one.O, the retailer built an MCP-based interface, enabling a new ChatGPT plugin that offers product recommendations for over 19 million articles. Users can engage the plugin via '@OTTO' to get personalized product advice, with purchases completed on OTTO's own shop. Additionally, OTTO has been testing ChatGPT Ads since September 2026, one of the first European partners, while clearly distinguishing paid ads from organic recommendations. Earlier, OTTO introduced a voice-assisted shopping tool that has driven up to 37% higher order values and double conversion rates. Future plans include AI agents that can retrieve real-time data and handle transactions, but these capabilities are not yet available.

• OTTO launched a ChatGPT plugin for product recommendations across 19 million articles, built on an MCP-based interface with one.O.
• The plugin enables customers to get advice on OTTO's assortment within ChatGPT, with purchases completed on OTTO's shop.
• OTTO has been testing ChatGPT Ads since September 2026 as one of the first European partners, distinguishing ads from organic recommendations.

Witt-Gruppe eröffnet virtuelle Umkleidekabine; Nächste Phase der KI-Transformation: OTTO startet GenAI-Enablement-Partner-Programm

New press releases on the Otto Group newsroom: Witt-Gruppe launches virtual fitting room (08.10.2026) and OTTO starts GenAI-Enablement-Partner-Programm (07.10.2026).

Alexander Peters erweitert als CTO die Geschäftsführung der Hermes Fulfilment

Otto Group 26.08.2026