FTC approves $13.5bn advertising merger but bars coordination over political content

US trade commission approves deal for Omnicom to buy Interpublic, creating the world's largest advertising agency

Omnicom's $13.5bn acquisition of rival Interpublic can move forward on the condition the new company does not enter agreements with others to steer ad dollars towards or away from publishers based on political content, the US Federal Trade Commission said on Monday.

The agreement with the agency would still allow individual advertisers to specify where their ads are shown, the FTC said. It would also settle potential claims from the FTC's nascent investigation into possible coordination with media watchdogs who have been accused by Elon Musk of helping orchestrate advertiser boycotts of the social media platform X.