Observed Signal · Apr 29, 2026 · Market Analysis · Source: Digiday · Impact: 3/5 · Sentiment: Negative
WPP CFO: The Trade Desk Targets Smaller Market Slice
WPP’s CFO Joanne Wilson told analysts that WPP works with multiple DSPs and SSPs and that The Trade Desk “operates in the open internet,” which she described as a potentially smaller segment of the overall advertising market. The comment follows reports that WPP, Publicis, Omnicom and Dentsu have reduced programmatic spend via The Trade Desk amid disputes over transparency and margins. The article places this pullback in a broader industry shift: ad dollars are moving toward streaming, paid social and retail platforms (walled gardens) and holding companies are building proprietary buying and data capabilities. Historical spend figures cited include WPP’s $1.1 billion global spend with The Trade Desk in 2023 and $1.4 billion on Meta in the U.S. The piece highlights concerns about supply-chain margins, increased audits of agency supply chains, and the growing commercial importance of direct programmatic paths and walled gardens.
Comments from WPP’s CFO and reported holdco reductions in Trade Desk spend signal shifting advertiser behavior away from open-web DSPs toward walled gardens and direct/owned buying paths — a meaningful commercial trend for programmatic supply chains and DSP market positioning.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- WPP CFO Joanne Wilson said WPP uses multiple DSPs and SSPs and that The Trade Desk “operates in the open internet,” a potentially smaller segment of the ad market.
- Holding companies including WPP, Publicis, Omnicom and Dentsu reportedly reduced the amount of ads they buy programmatically via The Trade Desk.
- In 2023 WPP spent $1.1 billion with The Trade Desk globally and spent $1.4 billion on Meta in the U.S. (figures cited from a lawsuit and industry reporting).
- Warc forecasts Alphabet, Meta and Amazon will collectively absorb 58.8% of global ad spend outside China by 2027, underscoring growth of walled gardens.
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Related Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Trade Desk Faces Programmatic Power Struggle
Major agencies including Dentsu and WPP have pulled back spend from The Trade Desk’s OpenPath offering amid concerns about hidden fees and transparency; Publicis Groupe stopped recommending TTD after a third-party audit. The Trade Desk is also changing how it pays identity providers such as LiveRamp and Experian. The episode frames the dispute as part of a broader industry shift in which DSPs, SSPs and agency holding companies vie to become a single unified ad platform (UAP). Competitors named include Pubmatic, Magnite and Index. The Trade Desk has seen executive departures (including Melinda Zurich, Matthew Henick and Ian Colley) and a stock decline this year, but posted nearly $3 billion in revenue last year and continues pushing direct-to-brand/publisher strategies via OpenPath and its AI-driven Kokai platform.
Trade Desk Still Dominant but Advertisers Shop Around
The Trade Desk remains the largest demand-side platform (DSP) with strong 2025 financials — $2.9 billion revenue, 47% margins and $1.3 billion cash — but advertisers and agencies are increasingly reallocating spend. Interviews with more than ten ad executives describe shifts toward Amazon DSP, retail media networks, direct buys and other DSPs driven by cleaner measurement, integrated retail-video offerings and account/service concerns. The Trade Desk says it is responding with head-to-head testing (claiming better reach and cost versus Amazon in tests), joint business plans (JBPs) and a reorganization into Specialized Business Units. Industry voices note the company has eased gated features and changed commercial behavior, while account instability and competitive multi-year deals from platforms are opening the door for rivals. The piece frames a broader risk of DSP commoditization as API/AI lowers switching costs.
Holding Companies Audit The Trade Desk Over Transparency
Several major holding companies have publicly challenged The Trade Desk in a high-profile programmatic transparency dispute. In February, WPP and Dentsu exited OpenPath, The Trade Desk’s direct-to-publisher initiative, citing fee visibility and placement clarity. In mid-March Publicis advised select clients to stop using The Trade Desk and commissioned FirmDecisions (part of Ebiquity Group) to audit its fee structures; The Trade Desk disputed the audit findings and invoked confidentiality. Omnicom then announced its own audit, reportedly led by KPMG, after an internal review found no issues. Industry sources characterize the conflict as one over commercial control and client proximity rather than solely fee misreporting. The Trade Desk has said joint service agreements account for more than 60% of revenue; Needham estimates 70% of Publicis’s brand clients have direct deals with The Trade Desk, placing roughly $87 million of revenue at risk against a ~$2.9 billion base. IPG, WPP and Omnicom previously took equity stakes in MediaOcean.
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