The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity (known simply as Cannes Lions) has a reputation for being the largest and most decadent event of the advertising industry, and it again delivered this year. Yes, there was talk that attendance was down, perhaps due to tightened agency budgets. Publicis famously bowed out of last year’s festivities, and many creatives – whether because they were stuck at Charles de Gaulle during the air traffic controller strike, or because their holding companies balked at footing the bill – were absent. However, tech companies and vendor partners were out en masse on the beaches and piers. There were more parties hosted by consultants and data providers. There was also a noticeable increase in the number of legacy TV players mingling with digital executives. The advertising industry has been faced with endless obstacles of late. Being an advertiser seems to get harder with every passing…