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WPP’s GroupM pulls out of giant Facebook media pitch

In a surprise move incumbent GroupM has pulled out of the $1bn Facebook global media pitch, currently being advised by ID Comms. The Wall Street Journal cites Facebook’s “strict contractual terms” as the reason.

Dentsu International, Havas and Publicis Media are still left in the pitch. GroupM is WPP’ giant media buying business.

Strict contractual terms may be mean many things: low to non-existent fees/commission; access to the agency’s books to ensure it’s not makng money somewhere else or all sorts of indemnities. Big media accounts are handled on such low rates (officially that is) that agencies have to make money somewhere. The only surprise being that some clients don’t get this despite auditors crawling all over the business.

Facebook has emerged recently as a major advertiser in traditional media (above), following in the footsteps of Apple and Amazon. As the western world’s biggest social media network it hardly needs to spent much in other digital media.

It therefore shouldn’t be so complex an account but, Facebook being Facebook, you never can tell. A brave call by Group nevertheless and a poser for ID Comms.

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