McDonald’s moves China media planning from OMD to Publicis Groupe

McDonald's moves China media planning from OMD to Publicis Groupe

McDonald’s China has appointed Publicis Groupe as its media planning partner in Mainland China.

The incumbent for both planning and buying was Omnicom agency OMD, which has a strong and longstanding relationship with the client on a global level.

Omnicom declined to comment for this story. 

The pitch, which started in March and was run by Ebiquity, did not include the media buying function, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Campaign is unable to clarify what if anything is happening with the buying function at this point, and is seeking clarification from all parties. 

A ‘Power of One’ dedicated unit will handle strategic planning across all media channels, according to Publicis. The pitch also included a requirement for a partner with digital expertise to support McDonald’s CDP (customer data platform) development and application in media planning, according to Publicis Groupe.

Jane Lin-Baden, managing partner for APAC and CEO of North Asia with Publicis Groupe, said in a release:

McDonald’s China is an incredible brand with ambitious growth targets in China, and we are truly honored to have been awarded this account. McDonald’s was looking for more than a conventional media planning agency. We demonstrated our Power of One approach in assembling a cross functional team across media, ad-tech, data science and analytics, to drive media efficiency and effectiveness. We are ready to be a partner of growth for McDonald’s China.”

To read the article in Campaign, click here.

First Featured 21/05/2020

Ebiquity Insights

Equip yourself with the data, benchmarks, and strategic insights needed to navigate the evolving advertising landscape.

agency cost reductions
What do agency cost reductions mean for advertisers? 
March 12, 2026
Ebiquity Appoints David Swaebe as Head of Growth, Americas
March 9, 2026
Digital OOH
The Verification Imperative: Why Digital OOH’s Future Depends on Accountability
March 5, 2026
How Holding Companies are Reuniting Media and Creative for Modern Marketing
The rebundling era: How holding companies are reuniting media and creative to meet the demands of modern marketing 
February 26, 2026
guides
Search in 2026: What the predictions agree on and where you need to act 
Search in 2026 is being defined by AI, automation and zero-click behaviour. This guide helps senior teams safeguard governance, strengthen m...
LHF advertising after the watershed: Early winners, exits and ROI implications for UK TV
February 12, 2026
Ebiquity Appoints David Muldoon as Global Managing Director of Marketing Transformation
February 6, 2026
research
Beyond ROI: What Really Drives Effectiveness on TikTok 
New research from TikTok, powered by independent econometric analysis from Ebiquity