In a mischievously terse, 91-word statement, Walmart yesterday said they will, or might, join Microsoft’s bid for TikTok. Walmart is aggressively growing its ecommerce and advertising businesses, so this announcement makes more sense than several other aspects of TikTok saga. Walmart was already expected to pass eBay this year to become the second-largest ecommerce company.

Here’s a less common coupling: retailers running digital ad networks. The connection is the retailers’ huge troves of customer data. CVS Pharmacy is the latest retailer to take the plunge, following Walmart, Target, and others. Troves for everyone!

Just over half of consumers (54%) like to receive personalized messages because they show the consumers are known to the brand, plus they can be time savers. The rest (46%) find it at best unimportant, at worst creepy. Relevance far outstrips personalization when it comes to driving email opens (54% vs. 19%). Takeaway: treat each customer the way they prefer.