As generative and agentic AI tools rapidly automate marketing workflows and reshape agency economics, the legal frameworks governing client relationships are racing to keep pace. While AI adoption pushes agencies toward software-driven efficiency, overhaul of traditional Master Service Agreements (MSAs) remains complicated. In Digiday’s recent feature by Kimeko McCoy on how agencies are adding AI clauses to MSAs, industry leaders, like Mile Marker President and CEO Scott Shamberg, discussed why small but useful contract adjustments are beating out full rewrites.

A Flexible Approach to MSA Governance

Rather than tearing up existing agreements or enforcing rigid overhauls across the board, agencies are opting for a targeted, step-by-step approach using specific additional clauses. This flexibility allows agencies to adapt to varying client comfort levels, risk thresholds, and ever-changing technology capabilities.

Scott Shamberg highlighted that Mile Marker is intentionally avoiding standalone contractual add-ons for AI automation. “We are not yet to the point where we are creating appendix A or B specifically to spell out agentified execution,” Shamberg told Digiday. “We are at the point now where we are just simply working that into existing MSAs.” Because guardrails and rules differ across clients and projects, integrating AI governance directly into existing MSAs provides the necessary agility without over-complicating agreements.

IP, Metadata, and Transparency in Practice

As agencies prepare toolboxes for the deployment and safeguarding of AI, such as Mile Marker’s proprietary Atlas tool, client contractual requests focus heavily on transparency, control, and governance.

Key contract modifications centered around AI typically cover:

• Data Ownership & Metadata: Clarifying how client data and metadata are managed, stored, and protected within AI environments.
• IP Ownership: Defining ownership rights for creative outputs and AI-generated materials.
• Disclosure & Tooling: Maintaining complete transparency regarding which specific AI tools are being deployed on a client’s behalf.
• Human-in-the-Loop Oversight: Guaranteeing human oversight over automated tools so that final decision-making and brand safety remain human-guided.
• Cost & Fee Transparency: Navigating evolving agency pricing structures as AI automation reduces manual hours while deployment costs continue to fluctuate.

While AI tools deliver speed, time savings, and creative performance, successful client-agency relationships rely on building adaptable frameworks that prioritize disclosure, data protection, and human oversight. Updating existing MSAs with tailored clauses, rather than forcing rigid contract overhauls, allows agencies and brand partners to innovate confidently together while guardrails continue to mature. 

Read the full analysis: Learn how agency executives are navigating AI contract clauses and changing business models in the full Digiday article.

Connect with our team: Looking to integrate AI into your marketing stack with full transparency and governance? Let’s connect with Mile Marker.