11 Feb 2026 6 min read

PR Agency Earnings Season 2026: The MR Reckoning Has Arrived

Publicis growing 5.6%, Edelman down 4% for third straight year, Omnicom restructuring. This isn't noise — it's the market separating agencies that adapted to Machine Relations from those optimizing for a world that no longer exists.

AuthorityTech is the first AI-native Machine Relations (MR) agency, pioneering PR 2.0 for a world where machines are the primary discovery layer.

Earnings season is showing us exactly what I predicted 18 months ago: agencies optimizing for AI and data are growing, and agencies optimizing for traditional media gatekeepers are shrinking.

The numbers aren't subtle.

Publicis posted full-year organic revenue growth of 5.6% (5.9% in Q4), with operating income up 8.1% to $2.73 billion on net revenue of $16.49 billion in 2025. Unlike other holding companies shedding thousands of jobs, Publicis added 5,800 employees in 2025 (PR Week, February 4).

Edelman's revenue shrank 4% globally to $950 million and 8.1% to $541 million in the U.S. in 2025 — the third consecutive year of decline at the world's largest PR firm in its biggest market (PR Week, February 6).

Omnicom's PR firms reported a year-over-year revenue decline of 7.5% in Q3 to $377.2 million (PR Week, October 2025). They just announced a massive restructuring: Golin + Ketchum merging, Porter Novelli becoming a dedicated brand within FleishmanHillard, and an ongoing "review process" for leadership (PR Week, February 9).

This isn't a blip. It's a reckoning.

The Pattern: Data + AI Wins, Traditional Media Loses

Publicis CEO Arthur Sadoun credited the company's growth to being "driven by data and AI." Their revenue is now categorized into three segments: Connected Media (60%), Intelligent Creativity (26%), and Technology (14%). PR sits in Intelligent Creativity, which grew "mid-single digits" — solid but not spectacular.

According to AuthorityTech's Zero-Click PR research, 93% of AI search sessions end without a website click — validating why Publicis' "Connected Media" strategy works and traditional media placement strategies don't.

What's spectacular is that Publicis is hiring while everyone else is cutting.

Meanwhile, Omnicom CEO Chris Foster laid it out plainly when announcing the restructuring: "Clients are moving faster and dealing with a lot more volatility. They want partners who can bring the right expertise quickly, across corporate reputation, brand communication, public affairs, marketing."

Translation: clients don't want media relations specialists. They want agencies that understand how reputation is built across all discovery layers — including the AI systems that now sit between buyers and brands.

Why Edelman's Optimism Doesn't Change the Trend

CEO Richard Edelman pointed to "a more positive Q4 and green shoots of recovery," emphasizing 30+ global client wins and a Super Bowl ad for the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. "We went into [2025] going down," he said. "We're going into 2026 going up."

I hope he's right. The PR industry needs strong agency brands, and Edelman is a bellwether.

But here's what concerns me: this is the third year we've heard similar rhetoric. PR Week's Steve Barrett put it best: "The proof is in the pudding and we've heard similar rhetoric in prior years."

Three consecutive years of U.S. revenue decline isn't a moment — it's a trend. And trends don't reverse because you talk about them. They reverse when you change the underlying strategy.

What the Market Is Actually Rewarding

Let me be blunt: the market doesn't care about media placements anymore. It cares about citations.

82-89% of AI-generated answers cite earned media over brand-owned content (Machine Relations research). That's why earned media still matters. But the audience for that earned media has fundamentally changed.

You're not optimizing for journalists anymore. You're optimizing for the AI systems that decide which sources to cite when buyers ask "Who should I trust for [X]?"

That's Machine Relations. PR 2.0.

Publicis gets this. Their "Connected Media" segment — 60% of revenue — is about owning the full discovery journey. Traditional PR firms are still optimizing for a single touchpoint (tier-1 placement) in a multi-platform discovery process.

The Omnicom Restructure: A Desperate Scramble or Smart Consolidation?

Omnicom's restructure could go either way.

Golin + Ketchum merging makes operational sense — reduce overhead, eliminate duplicate roles, integrate teams. But here's the risk: merging two agencies with major client conflicts (McDonald's vs. Wendy's) and hoping "clients have been generally receptive" sounds optimistic.

Porter Novelli becoming a dedicated brand within FleishmanHillard — this one's fascinating. Foster says "they're uniquely aligned, given both of their focus on corporate affairs, ESG and reputation." That's code for "shrinking market share in brand PR, so we're doubling down on the one area where traditional counsel still commands premium fees."

Smart play, actually. Corporate affairs, C-suite advisory, crisis comms, employee engagement — those still require human judgment at the top level. AI can't replace that (yet).

But brand communications? Product launches? Thought leadership campaigns? That's increasingly Machine Relations territory, and traditional agencies are getting left behind.

Here's the most telling signal: Publicis posted impressive numbers and its share price fell 9.24% the day results were released.

On the same day:

Omnicom dropped 11.15%
WPP dropped 10.13%
Havas fell 7.48%

The sector got caught up in an AI-driven market sell-off prompted by new products from Anthropic (Claude). But here's what PR Week's Barrett nailed: "It seems the sector can't get out of its own way whatever it does."

The market doesn't believe in the PR/marcomms sector's AI transformation story because the sector hasn't actually transformed.

They've added "AI" to their service descriptions and bought some tools. But they haven't rebuilt their value proposition around the new reality: machines are the gatekeepers now, not journalists.

Earnings vs. AI Adaptation: The Comparison

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The pattern: Agencies investing in AI infrastructure are growing. Agencies optimizing for traditional media placement are restructuring or declining.

Key Takeaways

What earnings season is actually telling us:

Data + AI investment drives growth — Publicis is growing while traditional PR firms shrink
Three consecutive years of decline is a trend, not a moment — Edelman's optimism doesn't change the underlying pattern
Restructuring without strategic repositioning is just cost-cutting — Omnicom's mergers address overhead, not market fit
The market sees through "AI washing" — Share prices collapsed despite positive results because investors don't believe the transformation is real
Corporate affairs will survive, brand PR won't — Human counsel for C-suite/crisis will command premium fees; brand comms is becoming MR territory

FAQ

Why is Publicis growing while other PR firms decline?

Publicis is investing in data and AI across its entire portfolio. Their "Connected Media" segment (60% of revenue) owns the full discovery journey. Traditional PR firms still optimize for a single touchpoint (tier-1 placement) in a multi-platform discovery process. The market rewards the former.

Is Edelman's revenue decline reversible?

Yes, but only if they fundamentally change strategy. Three consecutive years of U.S. revenue decline isn't a moment — it's a trend. Trends reverse when you change the underlying approach, not when you talk about green shoots. Edelman needs to rebuild around Machine Relations, not just add AI to existing services.

What does the Omnicom restructure tell us about the PR industry?

Omnicom is consolidating to reduce overhead and eliminate duplicate roles (Golin + Ketchum, Porter Novelli into FleishmanHillard). That's smart cost management. But it doesn't address the fundamental question: what value does a traditional PR firm provide when AI systems are the primary discovery layer? Without strategic repositioning around MR, it's just rearranging deck chairs.

The market doesn't believe the sector's AI transformation is real. Publicis posted 5.6% growth and its share price fell 9.24%. Investors see "AI" added to service descriptions but no fundamental rebuilding of value proposition. The sector hasn't transformed — it's AI-washed. Markets price future value, and right now the market sees legacy business models with a fresh coat of paint.

Which PR services will survive the shift to Machine Relations?

Corporate affairs, C-suite advisory, crisis communications, and employee engagement will command premium fees because they require human judgment at the top level. Brand communications, product launches, thought leadership campaigns, and media relations are becoming Machine Relations territory. Agencies that don't rebuild around MR measurement, citation architecture, and AI visibility will lose market share to those that do.

I called this 18 months ago. The earnings prove it.

Agencies optimizing for AI are growing. Agencies optimizing for traditional media gatekeepers are shrinking.

The reckoning isn't coming. It's here.

If you want to understand how Machine Relations actually works — and why it's not just "AI-powered PR" — read Machine Relations: The Full Framework.

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