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Interpublic Group (IPG) CEO Philippe Krakowski has expressed strong confidence in the company’s proposed merger with Omnicom, describing it as a transformative deal that will create “the most comprehensive and powerful range of marketing and sales solutions that incorporate creativity, data, and technology” in the industry. Speaking during the company’s second-quarter earnings call, Krakowski emphasized that the combined entity will be uniquely positioned to deliver measurable business outcomes for clients across sectors and geographies, leveraging complementary strengths in AI, data, commerce, and creativity.
“We’re creating a company that can drive growth for clients with the most comprehensive and powerful range of marketing and sales solutions,” Krakowski said, painting a clear picture of a future-ready marketing behemoth that blends the best of both legacy players.
The merger, announced earlier this year, has already received antitrust clearance in all but four jurisdictions, including a green light from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
During its earnings call last week, Omnicom Group Inc. CEO John Wren confirmed that the company’s acquisition of IPG is entering its final phase, with regulatory clearance secured in 13 of the 18 jurisdictions needed for closure.
“We remain fully on track to complete the transaction in the second half of this year. The responses from our clients and our peoplee has been overwhelmingly positive. There's a genuine sense of anticipation and excitement about the opportunities our combined company will create that has only intensified as we approach the closing,” Wren had said.
While the largest remaining approval is pending from the European Union, Wren expressed little concern. “Getting through the United States was probably the biggest hurdle… and I think a lot of these remaining governments look to see the US has approved it before they finalize whatever their decisions are,” he said. “We're pretty damn confident that we're well along in the process.”
Krakowski has also noted that the deal remains on track to close in the second half of 2025 and dismissed industry speculation about the merger creating internal distraction.
Read more: Ad holdco IPG reports lower revenue amid client shifts, sees progress ahead of Omnicom takeover
“We’ve never lost sight of the needs of our clients and the teams that deliver value to marketers around the world,” he said, adding that there has been widespread support and excitement across both organizations.
"...we’ve got some of our competitors happily talking about how we’re distracted, which apparently we’re not. And so there’s too much that needs to happen, whether it’s continued focus on clients. And there’s still a solid amount of new business activity going on out there."
Krakowski was also bullish about the broader implications of the merger, particularly in terms of tech integration, global scale, and talent depth.
"On his call last week, John mentioned that our integration planning process with Omnicom has been progressing. As we expected, we’re finding that our respective capabilities are highly complementary. And this gives us a high degree of confidence that the combined assets will be extremely powerful and differentiated in the marketplace. As John and I have also noted previously, the capacity that the new Omnicom will have to continue to invest and build out on its leadership position in the tech and AI space will be considerable and will further differentiate these offerings over time."
He further underscored that world-class creativity will remain core to the new organization, citing IPG’s recent wins at Cannes, including 107 Lions and several Grand Prix awards. “Creativity, when integrated with data, platforms, and audience insights, delivers exponential impact for brands,” he said.
Ultimately, Krakowski believes that the deal will be a game-changer— not just for IPG and Omnicom, but for the entire marketing and advertising industry. “It’s an exciting vision,” he said. “Together, we’re building a company that will be best positioned to solve business problems— not just marketing problems— for clients around the world.”
Lower revenue amid client shifts
Even as IPG reported a 6.6% year-on-year decline in Q2 net revenue, driven largely by three major account losses in 2024, the company posted a record second-quarter adjusted EBITDA margin of 18.1%, a result Krakowski credited to the company’s ongoing transformation program.
This program includes enterprise-wide restructuring, centralization of core functions, and the rapid integration of AI tools across business units. Krakowski confirmed that IPG is on track to exceed its original cost-savings target, with restructuring now expected to deliver up to $400 million in benefits— up from earlier estimates of $350 million.
The company posted total revenue of $2.5 billion, including billable expenses, for the quarter ended June 30. Revenue before billable expenses, or net revenue, was $2.2 billion, reflecting a 3.5 percent organic decline from the prior year, driven by account activity in 2024.
Net income for the period was $162.5 million, which included $88.4 million in after-tax expenses tied to previously announced strategic restructuring efforts. Interpublic reported a diluted loss per share of 44 cents, while adjusted diluted earnings per share came in at 75 cents.
Adjusted EBITA before restructuring charges and deal costs reached $393.7 million, with a margin of 18.1 percent on net revenue.
Focus on AI
Central to this transformation is Interact, IPG’s proprietary AI platform, which Krakowski described as a “key driver of our success.” Interact is now being used by more than half of IPG’s employees, and is processing over a million prompts annually.
The platform is used for everything from consumer insights and content creation to campaign testing and media planning, with many clients now choosing to directly access it through a SaaS model. This opens new monetization avenues for IPG, beyond traditional labor-based fees.
Krakowski also introduced a new AI-driven product—ASC (Agentic Systems for Commerce), which is designed to help CPG brands manage their digital commerce presence. Already in pilot with nearly two dozen global clients, ASC has delivered double-digit improvements in impressions and sales.
“It’s another way in which we can scale our expertise and expand our business beyond traditional marketing communications into solutions that deliver quantifiable results,” he said.
"The ASC platform captures data signals for every product and its competitors down to the SKU and store level, ingests insights into consumer searches, digital shelf position, product page content, pricing, inventory levels, and more, all in the service of optimizing sales and margin performance across the digital commerce ecosystem on behalf of a brand."
Despite current top-line pressures, IPG is maintaining its full-year guidance of an organic revenue decline of 1–2%, with Krakowski reaffirming that the company is on a path to deliver significantly improved margins, thanks to ongoing efficiency gains and a stronger performance in areas like media and healthcare.
He added that the back half of the year is expected to remain stable, and that early wins and an improving pipeline point to entering 2026 with positive momentum.
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