Observed Signal · Jun 12, 2026 · Award Announcement · Source: Hello Partner · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
2026 US Partnership Awards: Gold Winners Announced
The 2026 US Partnership Awards (USPAs) winners were published in a digital-first format, recognising leading partnership, affiliate, influencer and performance marketing work. Hello Partner founder Matthew Wood highlighted entrants’ stronger measurement, commercialised AI use, and disciplined execution. Major gold winners included Tombras (five golds, incl. Partnership of the Year and Best Full Funnel Strategy), CJ (Best Platform for Partnership Success and Best Use of AI/Automation with CJ 360-AI), Rakuten Advertising (two golds, incl. Best Content Partnership and Best Health, Beauty & Wellness Partnership with Bluemercury), Partnerize (Most Innovative Technology for VantagePoint), and Acceleration Partners (Best Affiliate Programme Optimization for TikTok, exceeding targets by over 160% in North America). Other notable winners included Linkbux Media, Gen3 Marketing, Round Barn Labs, Partner Commerce, Trafalgar with Capital One Ad Solutions, and Upsellit with Splits59.
Industry awards highlight best practices and commercialised AI use in partnership and performance marketing, raising standards and providing case studies, but they do not directly change platform policy or core AdTech infrastructure.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Tombras won five gold awards, including Best Full Funnel Strategy, Best Performance-Based Partnership, Best Lead Generation Campaign, Partnership of the Year, and Affiliate Marketing Team of the Year - Brand.
- CJ won Best Platform for Partnership Success and Best Use of AI / Automation in Partnership Marketing for CJ 360-AI.
- Rakuten Advertising won gold for Best Content Partnership and Best Health, Beauty and Wellness Partnership with Bluemercury.
- Partnerize received Most Innovative Technology for VantagePoint, described as a neutral 'System of Record'.
- Acceleration Partners won Best Affiliate Programme Optimization for its work with TikTok, with the programme exceeding targets by over 160% in North America.
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2026 US Partnership Awards Shortlist Revealed
HelloPartner published the 2026 US Partnership Awards (USPAs) shortlist on 2026-05-29. The USPAs, returning June 11 as a digital-first programme, highlight standout partnership work across categories including Media Buying Affiliate Campaigns, Most Innovative Technology, Best Full Funnel Strategy, Influencer Marketing, and Best Use of AI/Automation. The shortlist names agencies, platforms and brands — from Linkbux Media and Shutterfly to Rakuten Advertising, CJ, impact.com and numerous agency–brand collaborations — and calls out performance outcomes such as multi-thousand-percent revenue uplifts and multi-million-dollar growth engines. The article emphasises AI-driven entries (e.g., CJ 360-AI, Partnerize VantagePoint) and notes finalists gain access to a USPA community Slack channel for networking ahead of the awards on June 11.
Adweek Names 2026 Media Plan of the Year Winners
Adweek published its 2026 Media Plan of the Year awards, recognizing media agencies and brand-side planners across 22 categories for campaigns that shifted cultural conversations and delivered measurable results. Winners highlighted creative, cross-channel executions — from Kleenex partnering with PHD UK and artist Mr Doodle to drive sales, to Humana and Spark Foundry building an AI-driven system in the Microsoft Bing ecosystem to boost Medicare enrollments. Campaigns included experiential activations (Oscar Mayer’s Wienie 500), social-first debunking (Unilever’s Vaseline Verified), streamer-driven public safety (Havas Play France and Sapeurs‑Pompiers de France), and inclusive cause marketing (GMF with Havas Play France). The feature lists performance metrics and outcomes for featured campaigns and agencies, illustrating diverse tactics across OOH, streaming, AI, social, experiential, and insight-led work.
Digiday Announces 2026 Content Marketing Awards Winners
Digiday published its 2026 Content Marketing Awards winners on 2026-06-30, highlighting brand work that leans into creator partnerships, community-driven storytelling and interactive experiences. Major winners include the NFL (with Verizon) for Best Use of Native Advertising/Sponsored Content for the 21-episode series "Race to the End Zone"; NBCUniversal's BravoCon program, which won Most Innovative Marketing Team; and Adobe, which won Best Event for Adobe MAX London and Best Use of AI in Content Production for "The Unfinished Film." The announcement lists winners across many categories — from influencer and creator collaborations to experiential and AI-driven content — and includes metrics cited by winners (e.g., view and engagement totals for NFL, BravoCon, and Adobe campaigns). The winners list signals marketer emphasis on creator-led formats, fandom-driven marketing and experimentation with generative AI in content production.
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