Two of the nation's largest privately held advertising companies, Leo Group of Chicago, owner of the Leo Burnett agency, and New York-based MacManus Group are expected to announce an alliance and possible merger, Advertising Age said Tuesday on its Web site.
The report said the alliance would be announced today.
Such a combination would create what Ad Age said would be the world's fourth-largest advertising organization, behind Britain's WPP Group and just ahead of Japan's Dentsu. Their combined 1998 gross income totaled $1.8 billion.
