Week 452 to 8 November 2026

Paid Media News: Week 45

Measurement takes the lead this week. Offline uploads can land in the wrong account, and server side GTM will pass full IP addresses to ad tags from January. 9 updates below across Google Ads, ChatGPT Ads and Data Studio.

This week's actions

1
This week: Give each account its own conversion action name for offline uploads, then reconcile uploads against what each account reports.
2
Before 1 January 2027: Move ChatGPT Ads campaigns to Target CPA or Target CPC. Max Bid and Max CPC retire.
3
Before 11 January 2027: Review server side GTM IP handling for UK and EU traffic with your DPO.

ChatGPT AdsDeadline

ChatGPT Ads moves to Target CPA and Target CPC

New campaigns use target bidding from 9 November, and Max Bid and Max CPC retire on 1 January 2027.

What it is

Target CPA and Target CPC replace Max Bid and Max CPC for new campaigns in Ads Manager. You set the average cost per conversion or click you want, and OpenAI bids above or below it in each auction. Existing campaigns keep their current bidding for now, and Autobid is renamed intelligent bidding.

What it means for your account

Check your Pixel or Conversions API sends the event you plan to optimise for, and clear any Event Quality Score warnings. Set targets from your recent actual CPA or CPC, because tight targets on weak signals leave budget unspent.

Why it matters

ChatGPT Ads now bids the same way as Google and Meta, so conversion tracking quality decides how well it performs.

Region: GlobalSource: Search Engine Roundtable

Google AdsDeadline

Server side GTM will pass full IP addresses to Ads tags

From 11 January 2027, IP redaction moves from the whole server container to each individual tag.

What it is

Google confirmed the change in a service announcement on 2 November. Tags for Google Ads, DV360, SA360 and CM360 will receive the full IP address, while Google Analytics tags keep redacting it. Until now, redaction applied to the whole server container.

What it means for your account

Consent is your responsibility. To keep redacting, use a Transformation: a custom variable that calls getAnonymizedIpAddress plus an Augment event transformation that overrides ip_override. Test it in Preview before you publish.

Why it matters

If you run server side GTM on UK or EU traffic, ad tags will no longer receive a redacted IP by default. Review the setup with legal or your DPO before January.

Region: GlobalSource: Search Engine Roundtable

Google AdsPolicy

New telemedicine certification route in the UK, US and Canada

Telemedicine advertisers accredited by NABP can now apply for Google Ads certification.

What it is

Google is updating the UK, US and Canada sections of its Healthcare and medicines policy. Telemedicine advertisers accredited through the NABP Healthcare Merchant Accreditation Program become eligible to apply for Google Ads telemedicine certification. This is an additional route, and existing certification options are unchanged.

What it means for your account

If you advertise telemedicine services in these markets, check the policy page once published. NABP accreditation must be in place before you apply to Google.

Why it matters

Ads without the right certification get disapproved. Another route to approval helps healthcare advertisers avoid downtime.

Region: UK, US, CanadaSource: Search Engine Roundtable

Google AdsLive

Offline conversion uploads can count in the wrong account

Accounts that share a conversion action name can overcount offline conversions.

What it is

If you upload one batch to several accounts that share a conversion action name, Google may accept a GCLID or phone number in an account that never received the click. Google says these conversions do not feed Smart Bidding, but they do appear in the Conversions column and in cost per conversion.

What it means for your account

Give each account's conversion action a unique name, or upload per account. A #OK status only means the row was readable, so compare uploaded conversions with what each account reports.

Why it matters

MCC setups with shared naming are the most exposed. Inflated conversion numbers lead to the wrong budget decisions.

Region: GlobalSource: Search Engine LandSpotted by John Horn

Google AdsRolling out

Language targeting removed from Search campaigns

Search ads now match on the language of the ad itself, not a campaign setting.

What it is

Google began removing the campaign language setting from Search campaigns in September 2026, and it was reported missing from live accounts on 3 and 4 November. Search ads now match on the language of the ad itself. In Performance Max, the language setting no longer applies to Search Network ads, but still applies to YouTube, Display, Discover and Gmail. Shopping ads in PMax are not affected.

What it means for your account

Your ad copy and landing page now decide who sees the ad. Keep one language per ad group, and keep separate campaigns per language for budget control and reporting.

Why it matters

Accounts running in more than one language may see a shift in who their ads reach. Check multilingual accounts first.

Region: GlobalSource: PPC LandSpotted by Thomas Eccel

Google AdsLive

PMax may hand brand queries to brand Search campaigns

Google says Performance Max can filter out brand searches when a dedicated brand Search campaign exists.

What it is

Google updated its help page on how PMax works alongside other campaign types. Navigational and brand queries can be filtered out of PMax so a dedicated brand Search campaign serves them. Google recommends enough budget and strong ads in brand Search, plus Search Themes in PMax.

What it means for your account

If you run PMax next to a brand Search campaign, check brand Search is not limited by budget, or that traffic could go unserved.

Why it matters

PMax claiming cheap brand conversions has been a long running complaint, so results should get cleaner. There is no word yet on how reporting changes.

Region: GlobalSource: Search Engine RoundtableSpotted by Hana Kobzová

Google AdsLive

Google sets a minimum of 15 conversions a month for PMax

Google now says Performance Max needs at least 15 conversions in 30 days to run stably.

What it is

The figure comes from a revised Google help page on Performance Max performance swings. If conversion data is delayed, spend can spike or ROAS can drop before the system settles. Google does not say campaigns below 15 will be restricted.

What it means for your account

If a PMax campaign records fewer than 15 conversions a month, expect volatility. Check whether conversion reporting is delayed before you change budgets or targets.

Why it matters

It is the first clear minimum Google has given for PMax. Use it when deciding whether a small budget should run as PMax at all.

Region: GlobalSource: PPC LandSpotted by Hana Kobzová

Google AdsRolling out

Demand Gen moves to mixed media ads

New Demand Gen ads combine images, videos, carousels, product feeds and text in one ad.

What it is

Google is rolling out a single ad creation flow for Demand Gen. Video level creative preferences are removed for new ads, and placements follow video dimensions. Without a vertical video, square or landscape videos may show on Shorts with blurred borders. Existing ads stay editable, and single media ads can be created until January 2027.

What it means for your account

Upload videos in every aspect ratio so you control what shows on Shorts. To keep certain videos on specific YouTube surfaces, use separate ad groups with channel controls.

Why it matters

Google is removing creative controls and letting the system decide, so the quality of what you upload matters more than the settings.

Region: GlobalSource: PPC News FeedSpotted by Anthony Higman

Data StudioLive

Data Studio blends add a UNION operator

You can now stack data sources on top of each other inside a blend.

What it is

Released on 5 November, the new Union operator stacks up to five tables vertically, alongside the existing joins that combine them side by side. Google now labels both as merge in the blend editor. You can also map fields across sources that do not share the same structure.

What it means for your account

This is a true UNION, not UNION ALL, so identical rows are deduplicated. Add a static dimension such as the platform name to keep every row.

Why it matters

Combining Google Ads, Microsoft Ads and Meta data in one table no longer needs a workaround outside Looker Studio.

Region: GlobalSource: Google Data Studio release notesSpotted by Mehdi Oudjida

Want a second pair of eyes on how this week's changes affect your account? We review Google, Meta and Microsoft accounts every day.

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