For years now, Alphabet's (NASDAQ: GOOGL) (NASDAQ: GOOG) Google and Meta Platforms' (NASDAQ: META) Facebook have reigned supreme as the leaders in digital advertising. Estimates differ, but as recently as 2017, Google and Facebook managed as much as 73% of all digital advertising in the U.S., while also capturing as much as 83% of growth in the industry. But to quote Bob Dylan, "The times, they are a-changin'," and privacy moves by Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) last year may have changed the entire landscape.

Just this week, Alphabet and Facebook both reported third-quarter earnings, and the news was a wake-up call to investors. Alphabet's revenue grew just 6% year over year, while Meta's declined by 4%. To be clear, the vast majority of the challenges were related to foreign currency headwinds and slowing ad spend due to macroeconomic uncertainty.

Image source: Getty Images.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com