CCI raids on top media agencies send shockwaves through ad world

CCI raids on top media agencies rattles the ad industry.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) raids on top media agencies including  GroupM, Publicis, Dentsu and the Interpublic Group which together manage around 70 percent of advertising spends in India, has sent shockwaves in the ad industry with firms expecting a ripple effect on smaller players and impact on media buying during the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL).

The CCI raids have sent shockwaves through the advertising industry not just because of the agencies involved, but because they put long-standing industry practices under intense scrutiny, said Ambika Sharma, Founder and Chief Strategist, Pulp Strategy, digital ad agency. "This isn’t just about a few players; it’s about how media buying, transparency, and competition are structured at the highest levels."

These agencies handle billions of dollars in ad spends — GroupM, IPG, Publicis, and Dentsu control a significant share of media buying in India and their influence extends beyond large brands to smaller agencies, media publishers, and digital platforms that rely on their buying power, she added.

GroupM holds around a 40 percent market share and the other agencies under investigation collectively manage over 60-70 percent of the total ad spend in India across TV, digital media, radio, print, and OOH (out of home advertising), pointed out Chandan Sharma, General Manager, Digital Media, Adani Group.

India's advertising market is estimated to grow 6.5 percent and reach  Rs 1.1 trillion  by the end of 2025 from Rs 1.01 trillion last year, according to the Dentsu 2025 report .

"The immediate concern is whether these ad agencies will be able to work at their full capacity," he added. "It’s an important season for brands and they are going to negotiate hard and advertisers will have to provide competitive prices. It will impact ad-spend projections to some extent," he added.

These raids could cause advertisers to be more cautious, possibly leading to renegotiations of deals and a more scrutinised allocation of ad budgets especially for IPL, said Yasin Hamidani, Director, Media Care Brand Solutions, a brand solutions agency, who added that the uncertainty may affect the dynamism typically seen during the IPL season.

Sharing similar sentiments, Suyash Lahoti, Partner at Wit & Chai Group said that media buying decisions will slow down, and brands will be forced to rethink their ad strategies. "Expect more decentralized media plans, higher spends on programmatic, direct publisher deals, and alternative digital strategies just to hedge risks."

He added that the major impact is likely to be seen on IPL ad spends. "This year was already shaping up to be tricky. Brands had allocated a significant chunk of their budgets towards offline activations at the Maha Kumbh, given the sheer footfall. Meanwhile, WPL (Women Premier League) has been steadily growing its own advertising market. IPL was already expected to see a more cautious approach, and now, with this added uncertainty, some brands might hold back further, reallocate spends, or double down on safer, more transparent digital channels."

"The scale and timing of these raids are significant, especially with major events like IPL around the corner. It signals a much stricter regulatory stance that could lead to fundamental shifts in how the industry operates," Sharma said.

Earlier this week, CCI raided offices of top advertising agencies in Mumbai, Delhi and Gurugram and initiated a case against them and broadcasters over allegedly fixing ad rates and discounts, a Reuters report highlighted.

The raids are primarily concerned with allegations of anti-competitive practices, such as price fixing and collusion among top ad agencies. This challenges the integrity of advertising operations and could lead to severe penalties and a restructuring of business practices, Hamidani noted.

Sharma noted that the CCI is investigating whether agencies have engaged in anti-competitive practices including pricing agreements, bid-rigging, and unfair trade practices that limit market competition.

This situation has raised important conversations around a couple of aspects, pointed out Dhiraj Gupta, Co-Founder and CTO, mFilterIt, an advertising technology platform.

"Trust and transparency. Agencies should ensure clarity in media transactions and ad placements, accountability, data-led decision making and leveraging technology and analytics for more effective media strategies," he added.

The issue at hand will result in advertisers taking a closer look at their media buying strategies, performance measurement frameworks, and risk mitigation approaches to ensure that their investments deliver optimal value, Gupta said.

"The impact won’t be limited to the agencies under investigation. Many smaller and independent agencies depend on larger networks for media buying, ad inventory access, and joint ventures. If the agencies under scrutiny face penalties or restrictions, it could disrupt ad buying efficiency, increase costs for brands, and push some advertisers toward alternative platforms or in-house solutions," Pulp Strategy's Sharma said.

She added that while transparency and fair competition are essential, overregulation could also disrupt established ad-buying efficiencies. "The industry needs to strike a balance between compliance and operational agility and how agencies respond now will define the future landscape of media buying in India," she added.