April 22, 2025
In the fast-moving world of digital marketing, each week brings a new wave of changes—and this one delivered major shifts that marketers can’t afford to ignore. From Google facing another major antitrust blow, to Apple rebranding its ad platform, and Temu pulling out of U.S. Google Shopping ads, the digital ad space is in flux.
We’re also seeing advancements in Google Ads tools, updates to international SEO practices, and surprising insights from AI-driven user behavior. Whether you’re focused on ecommerce, SEO, or ad safety, these updates offer key takeaways that could influence your next move.
Let’s break down the most important stories and what they mean for your marketing strategy.
Table of Content
- Apple rebrands search ads as Apple ads
- Google ads API v19.1 adds new demand gen, video campaigns features
- Google’s illegal Ad tech monopoly harmed the open web
- Temu pulls its U.S. Google shopping Ads
- Google's new domain structure: what's next for Hreflang?
- Google AI overview study: 90% of B2B buyers click on citations
Last week in Digital Marketing, week 16 ,2025
Apple rebrands search Ads as Apple Ads
Apple has officially rebranded its "Search Ads" platform to "Apple Ads," reflecting its expanding advertising offerings beyond App Store search results. Initially launched in 2016 to display promoted apps at the top of search results, Apple Ads now includes placements in the Today tab and app listings under "You Might Also Like." This change aligns with Apple's naming conventions, such as Apple Music and Apple TV+, and signals the company's broader ambitions in digital advertising.
The rebranding suggests Apple is aiming to integrate ads into more of its ecosystem, potentially including services like Apple Maps. This move mirrors industry trends where companies like Netflix introduce ad-supported tiers to diversify revenue streams. For advertisers, Apple Ads now provides more touchpoints to reach users within Apple's high-intent environment, offering increased visibility and targeting opportunities.
Google Ads API v19.1 adds new demand gen, video campaigns features
Google has released version 19.1 of its Ads API, introducing enhancements for Demand Generation, video campaigns, and Local Services Ads. Notable updates include ad group-level Channel Controls for Demand Gen campaigns, allowing for more precise targeting, and enhanced Planning services support.
For video campaigns, the update adds metrics and segments for querying reach metrics with demographic adjustments and the ability to retrieve Audio Ads. Advertisers using Performance Max campaigns can now override brand exclusions specifically for Shopping ads, offering greater strategic flexibility. These improvements enable more sophisticated campaign management and optimization with minimal code changes.
Google’s illegal ad tech monopoly harmed the open web
A U.S. District Judge has ruled that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in the advertising technology industry, marking a significant victory for the Department of Justice. The court found that Google engaged in anticompetitive practices by tying its publisher ad server and ad exchange together, which substantially harmed publishers and users across the web.
This ruling is Google's second major antitrust defeat, following a previous case concerning its search monopoly. The DOJ argued that Google's dominance allowed it to extract monopoly profits and eliminate viable alternatives in the ad tech space. Google plans to appeal the decision, maintaining that its tools are competitive and beneficial.
Temu pulls its U.S. Google Shopping Ads
Temu has ceased its Google Shopping ads in the U.S. as of April 9, leading to a significant drop in its App Store ranking from a typical third or fourth position to 58th within three days. This move coincides with increased tariffs on Chinese imports and the elimination of the "de minimis" exemption, which previously allowed tax-free shipments under $800.
The company's business model relied heavily on subsidized orders to gain market share, and the new tariffs have disrupted this approach. The withdrawal from Google Shopping ads highlights Temu's dependence on advertising for visibility and raises concerns about the sustainability of its market position without such support.
Ecommerce advertisers might catch a break as Temu pulls back its aggressive ad spending. When big players suddenly exit, like Amazon did during the early pandemic, it often causes a drop in ad costs. With Temu out, we could see lower CPMs, which may also bring down CPC and conversion costs for the rest of the market.
Google's new domain structure: What's next for Hreflang?
Google is consolidating its country-specific domains to Google.com, while still delivering localized results to users. This change raises questions about the impact on hreflang tags, which are used to indicate language and regional targeting for content. However, Google's John Mueller has clarified that there are no changes to international SEO practices.
Despite the consolidation, hreflang tags remain essential for signaling content variations to search engines. SEO professionals should continue implementing hreflang annotations to ensure proper indexing and avoid duplicate content issues. Monitoring referral traffic patterns is also advised, as changes may occur due to the domain structure update.
Google AI overview study: 90% of B2B buyers click on citations
A recent study indicates that 90% of B2B buyers click on sources cited in Google's AI-generated Overviews. This finding challenges concerns about declining click-through rates due to AI summaries, suggesting that users still seek out original content for verification and deeper understanding.
For content creators and marketers, this emphasizes the importance of producing high-quality, authoritative content that can be cited in AI Overviews. Ensuring that content is well-structured and provides valuable insights can increase the likelihood of being referenced, thereby driving traffic and engagement from interested users.
Stay tuned for next week's digital marketing highlights!
A quick recap of the latest and most important trends, insights, and news shaping the digital marketing landscape, see you next week.
Junior content marketer
Aron is a 22-year-old Junior content marketer with a focus on digital strategy and audience engagement. He is gaining experience in creating and optimizing content to improve brand visibility and connect with target audiences. Always eager to learn, Aron stays updated on content trends and marketing techniques to contribute effectively to campaigns and projects.
