The Cookie Jar Stays Open: Google’s U-Turn on Third-Party Cookies

Google shook up the digital world by revealing that it will no longer be phasing out third-party cookies. This decision has had various reactions from industry experts and internet users.

In the post below, we will explore some of these reactions, explain the most recent update, and explain why Google has made a 180-degree turn on third-party cookies. We’ll also detail what this means for those in the publishing, marketing, and advertising fields and what those active within those fields should do to ensure they stay up to date with the move towards a cookieless future.

Google’s Announcement

In a recent announcement, Google shocked the digital world by revealing that it will no longer be actively phasing out third-party cookies.

The driving force behind Google’s original approach concerning cookie depreciation was to craft a solution that enhanced user privacy while also supporting a competitive marketplace for advertisers and publishers. Their solution is switching to using privacy sandbox APIs, which will offer more privacy to users while also ensuring accessibility to all.

However, Google and other early testers have encountered some issues with the original plan. These issues include the fact that the transition from third-party cookies to privacy sandbox APIs will require a great deal of work from publishers, advertisers, and marketers and have a huge impact on the industry at large.

The consequence of these issues is that the initial plan has stalled, and Google is now promoting a different solution. This solution involves the continued use of third-party cookies with increased user choice, allowing them to opt in or out at any time. Effectively, they are deprecated at a slower rate, allowing more time for the preparation needed for industry-wide use of privacy sandbox APIs and refining the APIs themselves.

Third-Party Cookies Explained

To better understand Google’s U-turn on third-party cookies, it’s helpful to have a clear idea of what they are as well as the purpose they serve in the current advertising landscape.

Third-party cookies are trackers in the form of tags or scripts that allow the site that placed them to track your internet behavior across the web, even when you are no longer on their site. These cookies gather data on your behavior as a consumer, which means that the site that originally attached the cookie can use this data to place targeted and re-targeted ads.

This means that third-party cookies are essential to the current advertising industry landscape. This is because they allow companies to use the data collected to show specifically targeted ads, which by placing products individuals are most likely to be interested in, in front of them increase the chances that they will make a purchase.

Industry Reactions

Now that Google has decided to retain third-party cookies, the internet is speculating about what this means for the future of online privacy and data tracking. Some are relieved that the personalized ads they’ve grown accustomed to will continue to populate their screens, while others worry about the implications for their digital footprint.

Filippo Gramigna, co-CEO at Onetag, highlights that while it seems like a U-turn, the industry outside of Google continues to change into a more privacy and user complaint system. He cites AI-powered smarty curation as the most likely leading alternative to 3rd party cookies.

On the other hand, Katie Madding, Chief Product Officer, Adjust, highlights that Google’s privacy sandbox approach is a complicated project with a great lot of regulations to negotiate, so delays are inevitable. She also suggests that with the delay comes an opportunity for advertisers and marketers to be involved in making contributions to ensure that the result is as effective for them as possible while still preserving users’ privacy.

While industry reactions to Google’s change of heart on third-party cookies are diverse, you can get a better idea of its impact by signing up for ADvendio’s upcoming webinar: “Media Insights Webinar: Unlock the Future of Media” Matt Rohrs, Sales Director at ADvendio, and Anthony Caccioppoli, Principal and Founder of Caccioppoli Consulting Group, will react to Google’s decision to no longer proceed with cookie depreciation and discuss several other hot topics in the industry.

Businesses and Advertisers Should Continue to Prepare

For businesses and advertisers, Google’s choice to retain third-party cookies offers stability in an ever-evolving digital landscape. The ability to track user behavior and deliver tailored advertisements remains intact, providing a valuable tool for effectively reaching target audiences.

However, those in the industry should still prepare for cookie depreciation. Indeed, just because Google has decided not to proceed with cookie depreciation right now does not mean that they will not enact it more fully in the future. While it appears to be a 180-degree turn, it’s more of a slowing of the process rather than a halt.

This is because there is no guarantee that third-party cookies will continue to be used going forward. Instead, users are being given more control over whether third-party cookies should be allowed on their browsers or not. This means the speed at which cookies will be phased out will depend on how quickly and enthusiastically the consumer chooses to opt-out.

What this means for this industry is that whether cookies are going away now or later, the way they are used is changing. Therefore, cookieless advertising solutions will still be critical to the industry.

Indeed, there are several cookieless solutions that those in the industry should consider, including embracing diversified data, including first-party data, capitalizing on AI-powered tools that target users based on content rather than cookies, and using iteration to test and learn what effect cookie depreciation could have on your business.

Using data cleanrooms is another cookieless option for those in the industry. Data clean rooms are ‘sterile’ digital environments. Based on the idea of real-life clean rooms, they provide a space where data can be anonymized and aggregated for analysis and insight that can be used for marketing and advertising.

Conclusion

In summary, Google has announced that it will no longer actively depreciate third-party cookies, instead giving users more choice to accept or reject them. Google will also slow down the rollout of privacy sandbox APIs, allowing more time for preparation and further development.

This means that while it may appear as if third-party cookies have been given a last-minute reprieve, their depreciation has, at most, been slowed. Therefore, those in the publishing, advertising, and marketing industries need to continue to prepare for a cookieless future by adopting tools such as AI, testing, first-party data, and clean rooms.

To learn more about the impact of cookie depreciation and Google’s privacy sandbox API, sign up for Advendio’s expert lead webinar today!

Originally posted on ADvendio.com on 7th August 2024.