The 10 Things In Advertising You Need To Know Today

Good morning! Here is what you need to know before your first meeting of the day:

1. Here are the 10 worst ads of 2014. Check out these howlers from the likes of Unilever, Paddy Power and Nippon Airlines.

2. Arby's has made an entire ad apologizing to Pepsi. The fast food chain had a contractual agreement to feature Pepsi in at least two commercials a year, but Arby's recently realized it forgot to fulfill the obligation in 2014.

3. In 2015 the UK will become the first country where half of ad spend goes on digital media. Media agency GroupM predicts that the next countries to follow will be Sweden, Denmark, Australia and Norway.

4. AOL has acquired Vidible, a startup that helps publishers extend the reach of their videos to other websites, for an estimated $50 million. It means AOL now has an automated system that allows video owners to sell their content to websites that want video inventory, adding to its video advertising platforms like Adapt.tv and ONE.

5. Tumblr's agency development lead Ari Levine has joined digital agency VaynerMedia, AdAge reports. Levine's hire is part of a wider plan to rapidly grow the business from 400 to 1,000 employees.

6. Digiday has conducted an extensive investigation into Google's display advertising dominance. Some media buyers have been reporting that Google is trying to coerce them into using DoubleClick Bid Manager - the company's demand-side platform - and its DoubleClick Ad Exchange in conjunction, or else ad impressions won't count toward satisfying the agencies' upfront buying agreements with Google.

7. Emirates' vice president Gary Chapman has revealed why the brand really pulled out of its FIFA World Cup sponsorship. Arabian Business reports that Chapman said sponsorship of World Cups of any sport do not create "bang for your buck."

8. Big car brands are backing out of the Super Bowl, Forbes reports. Car marques usually comprise the largest advertising category during the big game, but so far brands like Volkswagen, Jaguar and Lincoln have all said they won't be paying the required $4 million for a 30-second spot this time around.

9. YouTube is the most popular site among tweens, according to research from KidSay, the WSJ's CMO Today reports. Some 93% of kids aged between eight and 11-years-old say they use YouTube and 69% say they have an account, despite the site's over-13 age restriction.

10. Going viral is not just for videos and memes. NPR explores how, recently, audio clips are becoming hugely popular online - a trend that could open up interesting marketing opportunities for brands.