Digest: Spotify CEO Exit Brings Dual Leadership; Epic Says Apple's Install Changes Slash Drop-Offs; The Trade Desk Overhauls Digital Ad Data Marketplace - ExchangeWire.com

"Spotify will enter 2025 under new leadership as co-founder Daniel Ek steps down as CEO in January 2026, moving into the role of executive chairman. The streaming platform will shift to a dual-CEO model, elevating Gustav Söderström (chief product & technology officer) and Alex Norström (chief business officer) to jointly lead the company. Both have served as co-presidents since 2023."

"Epic Games has reported a major boost in user engagement after Apple simplified the process for installing third-party app stores in iOS 18.6, cutting user drop-offs by 60%. Epic games said that before the update, 65% of users abandoned attempts to install its game store. That figure has now fallen to 25%, in line with installation rates on Windows and macOS. The company hailed the shift as a step toward fairer access and greater competition in digital marketplaces."

"The Trade Desk has launched Audience Unlimited, an upgrade to its third-party data marketplace designed to make digital advertising more efficient. Audience Unlimited tackles the barrier of third-party data being viewed as costly and difficult to measure, by using AI to evaluate and score thousands of data segments from trusted providers, then bundling data at a fixed rate, removing the unpredictability of a la car"

Daniel Ek will move to executive chairman in January 2026 and Spotify will adopt a dual-CEO structure with Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström jointly leading after serving as co-presidents since 2023. Spotify reported a net loss of about $100m in the second quarter despite adding subscribers, and joins other firms using co-CEO models that can drive innovation but complicate accountability. Apple’s iOS 18.6 simplified third-party app-store installs, reducing Epic’s user drop-offs from 65% to 25% and bringing installation rates closer to desktop platforms. The Trade Desk launched Audience Unlimited to use AI to score and bundle third-party data at fixed rates to improve measurement and predictability in digital advertising.

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