One of the biggest stories of recent months has been the long-awaited shift away from third-party cookies and towards more privacy-forward options for data collection. Now, the Google Privacy Sandbox, heralded as the next frontier in privacy and data, is down for the count.
On July 22, Google announced a reversal in its planned policy. “Instead of deprecating third-party cookies, we would introduce a new experience in Chrome that lets people make an informed choice that applies across their web browsing, and they’d be able to adjust that choice at any time. We’re discussing this new path with regulators, and will engage with the industry as we roll this out,” Google said in a blog post. The specifics of this new approach, as well as the future of the Privacy Sandbox and its tools, will be announced at a later date.
Why Are Cookies Sticking Around?
Google hasn’t officially gone into much detail about this reversal. According to sources in Ad Age, however, a lack of commitment from Google led to lackluster performance, which in turn brought its much-anticipated rollout to a halt. Even Google’s own demand-side platform, Display & Video 360 (DV360), didn’t enable testing in the Privacy Sandbox; alternate cookie-less testing options actually were more accessible for many. Ad Age also reports that Google’s ads side was kept siloed from the Privacy Sandbox, making it much harder to develop an integrated, effective solution.
Instead, it appears the likeliest situation – at least for now – is putting the power in the hands of individual users. The plan is to allow Chrome users to customize their cookie preferences in-browser. While it’s likely that a large chunk of privacy-conscious users will, in fact, choose to decline cookies wherever possible, the support for both cookies and non-cookie approaches could make things more complicated for tech and ad professionals alike.
One potential ripple effect? The lowering of (some) paywalls. “Without third-party cookies, website owners were struggling to figure out how to monetize their audiences and this is one of the reasons there’s been such an increase in gated or paywalled content in recent years,” Steve Silvers, executive vice president of global creative, media and ecosystem at Kantar, told CNBC. He suggested that the retention of cookies might permit some publishers to reduce paywalled content, since it can be monetized through cookie-driven advertising after all.
Privacy Still Matters
Both legally and personally, privacy still is a top concern. Google, like other tech companies, must comply with international privacy regulations, including stricter ones like those in the EU. And, overall, the push for privacy is still a priority. 68% of global consumers report being concerned about data privacy online, and even higher numbers report deleting an app or deciding not to make a purchase out of privacy concerns.
Even though cookies are still going to be supported, advertisers should still expect a major drop-off in cookie usage and plan accordingly. “There are scenarios where we might see 80%, or even 90% drop-off in cookie volume, in which case is pretty much the same as them being removed altogether, and we’re going to need robust alternatives,” MiQ global chief strategy officer John Goulding told Ad Age.
What does this mean for your advertising strategy? For now, it means a slight adjustment, one that you’ve probably already begun preparing for. It’s still a good idea to be looking for effective alternatives to third-party cookies; one way or another, they will never be the same, even if they still technically exist. Having a privacy-forward approach can also be a bonus for your brand reputation, helping enhance customer loyalty because they know you respect their privacy. Cookies may not be vanishing as expected, but it’s still critical to develop a more privacy-focused approach to data collection, both to improve your own targeting of ad dollars and to confirm to customers that you respect them and their choices.