World Federation of Advertisers discontinues small brand safety initiative after Elon Musk’s X sues WPXI [Video]

NEW YORK — (AP) — A small brand safety initiative is ceasing operations — days after being targeted by social media platform X in a lawsuit alleging the group helped coordinate a “massive advertiser boycott” after billionaire Elon Musk bought the company in 2022.

The World Federation of Advertisers has confirmed that it’s discontinuing its Global Alliance for Responsible Media initiative. In a Friday statement, the advertising group said that recent allegations “unfortunately misconstrue (GARM’s) purpose and activities” — adding that this “caused a distraction and significantly drained its resources and finances.”

X, formerly Twitter, sued the World Federation of Advertisers and member companies Unilever, Mars, CVS Health and Orsted on Tuesday. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Texas, took particular aim at GARM’s alleged role that X says contributed to an advertising pause after Musk acquired the company for $44 billion in October 2022.

X alleged that advertisers conspired with and through GARM “to collectively withhold billions of dollars in advertising revenue” from the company. The …