The second semester of 2026 concentrates several simultaneous shocks for digital marketing professionals. The deployment of generative search by Google in France, the entry into force of new European regulatory obligations on AI-generated content, and the questioning of the timeline for phasing out third-party cookies: these movements are not limited to announcements. They change the concrete conditions under which campaigns are designed, disseminated, and measured.
Mandatory Marking of AI Content: What Article 50 of the EU AI Act Changes for Marketing Teams
Digital marketing watch articles often mention artificial intelligence in terms of productivity or creativity. One aspect is less addressed: the regulatory constraint now weighing on content generated or modified by AI intended for the European market.
Since August 2, 2026, the transparency obligations of the EU AI Act have come into effect. Article 50 requires that AI systems interacting with people (marketing chatbots, voicebots) clearly identify their artificial nature. Synthetic or manipulated content by AI, whether visuals, videos, voices, or texts, must be marked in a machine-detectable way.
This point goes beyond the simple mention “generated by AI” visible to the reader. Following the latest marketing news allows us to gauge the extent of this change: the marking must be readable by automated tools, which implies integrating specific metadata into the produced files.
For teams using image generation tools, automated video editing, or assisted writing, compliance is no longer just a disclaimer. It involves an adapted production chain, from the creation tool to dissemination on advertising platforms.
Google AI Mode and Advertising in Generative Responses: A New Inventory to Understand
The deployment of AI Overviews and AI Mode by Google in France since July 2026 has been widely discussed from an SEO perspective. Another aspect deserves advertisers’ attention: the emergence of ad formats directly within AI-generated responses.
Google is testing the integration of ads related to exact match and phrase match keywords within AI Mode. This format places sponsored links not above or beside the results, but within the conversational response of the engine itself.
Field feedback varies on this point. Some advertisers report click-through rates different from those observed on standard results, without being able to draw generalized conclusions at this stage. The format is still in testing, and public data remains limited.
What This Changes in Campaign Management
The keyword targeting logic persists, but the display context changes. An ad inserted into a conversational summary does not have the same effect as a sponsored link at the top of a standard results page. Teams managing Google Ads campaigns must monitor performance segmented by placement type, a granularity that Google has not yet standardized.
- The ad format in AI Mode currently concerns exact match and phrase match, not broad targeting.
- The ad appears in the flow of the generated response, altering the user’s visual journey.
- Standard metrics (CTR, average position) lose relevance if the placement is not isolated in reports.
Third-Party Cookies and First-Party Data: An Uncertain Timeline
The abandonment of third-party cookies by Google, announced and then postponed several times, remains an open issue. The scenario of a scheduled phase-out has given way to a more ambiguous situation, where third-party cookies coexist with Chrome’s Privacy Sandbox without a firm withdrawal timeline.
This uncertainty has a concrete effect on budgetary decisions. Companies that had heavily invested in cookie-less targeting solutions (universal identifiers, cohorts, contextual targeting) find themselves facing a mixed market, where old methods still work on part of the traffic.
Collecting First-Party Data Remains the Only Stable Strategy
Regardless of the fate of third-party cookies, first-party data is the asset least exposed to changes in browser policies. Brands that have implemented direct collection mechanisms (customer accounts, forms, loyalty programs) have an exploitable base independent of Google or Apple’s decisions.
In contrast, advertisers still dependent on third-party targeting for the majority of their display or retargeting campaigns face an operational risk: if the withdrawal ultimately materializes, the transition will be abrupt for those who have not prepared for it.
Social Platforms and Integrated Commerce: TikTok Shop as a Market Signal
The rise of TikTok Shop confirms that social commerce is no longer limited to “buy” buttons attached to posts. The purchasing journey takes place entirely within the app, from product discovery through video content to payment.
This model changes the budget allocation between acquisition and conversion. Brands present on TikTok Shop invest in native content rather than in campaigns redirecting to an external site. The customer acquisition cost and net margin vary significantly by product categories, and the available data does not allow conclusions about long-term profitability for all sectors.
- High-performing content on TikTok Shop is produced by creators or in “live shopping” format, not by traditional ad formats.
- The platform controls the end-to-end experience, which reduces brands’ ability to collect data on their buyers.
- The beauty, fashion, and accessories categories concentrate the majority of activity, leaving other sectors in observation.
These four issues—AI regulation, advertising in generative responses, the fate of third-party cookies, and integrated social commerce—intersect in the decisions marketing teams must make in the coming months. None of them offers a definitive answer, and that is precisely what makes their regular monitoring necessary.
