Jay Wilson, vp analyst for Gartner’s marketing practice, agreed the merger would make a rather complex holding company.

“It will be interesting to see how the combined holding companies further consolidate their agency brands. IPG, in particular, has been known for allowing its individual agencies to maintain quite a bit of independence, as has Omnicom.”

3. It’s a double-edged sword for independent networks and consultancies

While Weiser pointed out that the speed of closing will be something competitors watch closely, clients too will be monitoring for any disruptions to service in the next 12 months.

“This probably strengthens the position of larger independent agencies who may appeal to clients who don’t want to deal with a mega-agency holding company,” explained Wilson.

Jay Pattisall, vp and principal analyst at Forrester, concurs that fewer, bigger enterprise choices will facilitate more independent options. He pointed to PE-backed independent agencies including Horizon Media, DEPT, and PMG, which have captured scale in media buying with performance and tech-based services.

“These companies must and will react to a shifting competitive landscape,” he said, noting that the market should brace for independents to double down on innovation to compete.

Lacey said the deal could be an opportunity or a threat to challenger networks like Stagewell, which operate many separate agency brands.

“For any brand not wanting to work with one of the consolidated super networks, Stagwell could step in. But if clients choose not to behave in this way, Stagwell may well find itself up for grabs,” he said.

He added that Accenture could also be vulnerable in a new landscape dominated by three titans.

“It may also look to acquire a newly available asset, especially around data and media where it has limited capabilities,” he said. “For a business like Accenture, with a market cap of $243 billion, that would be eminently doable.”

4. Bringing more tech, creative, and PR chops to the table

The deal will deliver a handful of discipline-specific powerhouses. On the media and tech front, Omnicom’s data and tech propositions (including Acxiom and Flywheel) will help the industry better face up to tech giants like Meta and Google.

On the PR side, IPG’s Weber Shandwick and Golin will soon sit alongside Omnicom’s FleishmanHillard and Ketchum, delivering strategic comms capabilities for clients.

When it comes to creative, IPG brings McCann, FCB, Mullen Lowe to the table. “Of these, only McCann is a decent scale competitor against Omnicom’s TBWA, DDB, or BBDO, which essentially presents four advertising divisions,” argued Lacey.

Combined, these media, tech, PR and creative capabilities could help Omnicom become a more influential force, but only if leaders choose to spend wisely.

“Whether [its] more powerful or improved depends on where it invests its resources,” said Wieser.

Keep up with ADWEEK’s coverage of the Omnicom-IPG takeover here.