WPP Pushes Back
WPP did not immediately comment late Friday, but a spokesperson told the Los Angeles Times the company is aware of the lawsuit, noting it was filed by a former employee “let go in a recent organizational restructuring.”
“No findings have been made regarding these allegations,” the company stated. “We will defend against them vigorously.”
Billions in Client Spending at Stake
Filed Nov. 11, the suit notes WPP oversees billions in global client spending annually. Its GroupM division — recently rebranded as WPP Media — controlled roughly $60 billion in client advertising expenditures, making it the world’s largest media buyer.
GroupM was created to unify the purchasing force of WPP’s client base, enabling the company to secure valuable high-volume discounts. Foster said those incentives ranged from cash to free or deeply discounted media inventory.
The issue, he says, is simple: Clients never saw those benefits.
Publicly, WPP champions a “client-first” philosophy. But Foster alleges the company’s profits depend heavily on siphoning rebates and other incentives intended for clients — practices he says are both unethical and concealed.
