Mobile ad tech firm Pocketmath shuts down

Hi! Welcome to the Insider Advertising daily for January 19. I’m Lauren Johnson, a senior advertising reporter at Business Insider. Subscribe here to get this newsletter in your inbox every weekday. Send me feedback or tips at LJohnson@businessinsider.com.

Today’s news: Mobile ad tech firm Pocketmath shuts down, shareholders seek to pressure Omnicom and Home Depot, and how the vaccine could boost pharmacies’ business.

FILE PHOTO: A man talks on his iPhone at a mobile phone store in New Delhi

Thomson Reuters

An adtech company has quietly shut down after facing allegations of unpaid bills

I reported that Pocketmath, an adtech company that helped advertisers buy programmatic ads on publisher sites, has shut down after facing lawsuits over unpaid bills.
Cofounder and executive chairman Eric Tucker told me that Pocketmath had tried to get acquired but declined to discuss what happened to the company.
Adtech firms including Mediavine were alerted that Pocketmath may seek “clawbacks,” or ask publishers to return money that they’ve already been paid.

Click here to read the full story.

Dominique Charriau/Getty Images

Shareholders call on big advertisers Omnicom and Home Depot to investigate whether Facebook, Google, and Twitter’s ads fuel violence and hate speech

Patrick Coffee reports that shareholders in Omnicom and Home Depot are seeking investigations into whether ads on Facebook, Google, and Twitter fuel violence and hate speech.
Investors expect the issue to get traction in the wake of the January 6 attack on the US Capitol.
Nonprofit Open Mic is leading the efforts on behalf of The Nathan Cummings Foundation and Myra K. Young.

Click here to read the full story.

Registered nurse Nikki Galanakis, 28, is given the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine at Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital, in South Los Angeles, California, December 17, 2020.

REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

How pharmacies and retailers like Walmart, Kroger, and Rite Aid could benefit from the vaccination push

Pharmacies and retailers helping administer coronavirus vaccines could see a boost to their own businesses, reports Tanya Dua.
The vaccination effort is a chance for pharmacies show how they’ve been revamping their businesses as some big-box retailers make inroads into healthcare.
The retailers’ effort to push into advertising sales could also get a boost.