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What are media rebates? Agency transparency in the hot seat, with Ewan Larkin
Episode 23
Friday, 27 February, 2026

Agency reporter Ewan Larkin decodes a recent lawsuit against WPP Media that has made agency transparency the industry's buzziest topic. Larkin defines media rebates and principal media buying, explaining how agencies aggregate billions in client ad budgets to negotiate volume deals with platforms such as Google, Meta and Amazon, and how those arrangements can create conflicts over who benefits from discounted or proprietary inventory. He describes potential red flags in these practices and lists what questions marketers should be asking their agencies to protect their marketing budgets. Plus, Estée Lauder's media agency shakeup, and a shocking agency executive exit. Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode: ~Inside the lawsuit against WPP Media ~Acadia's CEO on media rebate transparency ~Get tickets to Ad Age's NextGen Marketing Summit ~Listen to the Marketer's Brief podcast