Google cookie U-turn: Industry is ready to move on, leaders say
Notwithstanding Google’s volte-face on cookie deprecation, experts are advising brands to continue their move away from cookies and find alternative solutions that are more effective.
On Monday, Google’s announcement that it would no longer be deprecating third-party cookies on Chrome came as a sudden reversal to what had been a years-long process of moving beyond the cookie and towards a new solution that better respects user privacy.
That process had run into repeated snags with competition authorities, including the UK’s Competition & Markets Authority (CMA), which had suggested that Google’s own post-cookie solution, known as the Privacy Sandbox, could be in breach of fairness regulations.
Last week, the Privacy Sandbox’s terms of services were found to likely be “unfair and illegal” if tested in court, according to due diligence undertaken by Preiskel & Co, the legal counsel for non-profit organisation Movement for an Open Web (MOW).
James Rosewell, MOW’s co-founder, called the move to retain third-party cookies “a clear admission by Google that their plan to enclose the open web has failed”.
He continued: “Their goal was to remove the interoperability that enabled businesses to work together without interference from monopolists, but a combination of regulatory and industry pressure has put an end to that.”
Google’s new solution is to “elevate user choice“, according to Privacy Sandbox vice-president Anthony Chavez.
“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,” Chavez explained.
Details on this alternative solution are scant at this stage, but it will involve prompting users upon logging in to Chrome whether they would prefer to reject cookies on all websites, rather than on each individual website accessed.
In addition, Google has committed to continuing development on the Privacy Sandbox, although it is unclear how it might adapt the suite so that competition authorities give it the green light.
Analysis: Dysfunction and indecision
Rosewell told The Media Leader that MOW intends to challenge Google’s new solution on the grounds that web browsers should not be able to remove the choice of whether third-party cookies are usable.
Rather, MOW will argue it should be up to organisations themselves to make the choice between using or ditching cookies. He admitted that Google’s “user choice” solution may improve the user experience, but that doing so should not come from anti-competitive practice.
“The first thing we’ll be saying to the CMA is these prompts won’t be necessary,” said Rosewell. If the CMA approves Google’s new solution, however, Rosewell would push to ensure Google does not preference its own products in its implementation.
Reacting to Google’s decision, Rhys Cater, chief solutions officer, data and tech, at Precis, said that while it is not a surprise Google had changed its strategy, “this announcement is an unwelcome development that shows just how dysfunctional and indecisive the modern online advertising industry has become”.
He continued: “Third-party cookies were never designed for online advertising. They are a convenient, fudged solution to an industry that grew up quickly and with little oversight, and have never worked as robustly and comprehensively as some people like to pretend.
“In Apple’s ecosystems, they are already effectively dead. It’s ludicrous that the industry is clinging on to this technology rather than developing more modern solutions that are fit for purpose and build for the needs of advertisers and user privacy alike.”
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‘Raggedy jumper in the wardrobe’
Indeed, for many advertisers, the response to Google’s announcement has been lukewarm at best, with many unsure how to proceed.
After years of preparation for cookie deprecation, there now exists an entire cottage industry ready to sell solutions that do not use cookies. However, about half of marketers were previously described by Data & Marketing Association chair Tony Miller as “relieved” cookie deprecation had been further delayed because they needed more time to get their house in order. A survey conducted by Teads earlier in the summer found that half of publishers are themselves not ready for a cookieless future.
“This news represents a significant shift in Google’s approach to third-party cookies, but it isn’t and shouldn’t be a return to cookies as the default,” argued IAB UK CEO Jon Mew.
“Our industry has made huge progress over the past four years and this process has irrevocably reshaped the digital ecosystem — that doesn’t just evaporate with the removal of Google’s cookie deadline. The reality is that a big proportion of the open web can’t be addressed by third-party cookies already, so continuing to pursue other ways of targeting and measuring audiences is vital.
“It’s also important to note that the ICO [Information Commissioner’s Office] has responded by encouraging the industry ‘to move to more private alternatives to third-party cookies — and not to resort to more opaque forms of tracking’.”
Meanwhile, Good-Loop chief strategy officer Ryan Cochrane likened cookies to “the raggedy jumper in the wardrobe”.
“Sure, keep it around because it’s comfy and, yes, it’s fine for wearing at home, or maybe even a friend’s house,” Cochrane said. “But should you wear it to a meeting? No. And you don’t, because you know that even though you like it, you have better choices.”
Guillermo Dvorak, managing partner, digital and data, at Total Media added that “the damage is already done”, as media agencies have begun actively exploring cookie alternatives.
“Third-party cookies will become pretty useless moving forward, with cookie acceptance on websites at an all-time low,” Dvorak argued. “Even with frequent prompting, the average is at 40% acceptance. Google clean room will only prompt you once, which means the acceptance is likely to be lower than 20%, which is ineffective.”
Dvorak told The Media Leader that Total Media had stopped using third-party cookies a year ago and now uses a combination of alternative models, including working with first-party data from publishers.
Podcast: Marketers ‘relieved’ about cookie deprecation delay
What’s next for Google and publishers
Despite a number of loud voices advocating for a continued move beyond the cookie, it is likely to remain part of digital advertising strategies in the near term due to its convenience with marketers.
For Google, further clarity is needed on what the “elevated user choice” in Chrome will look like. As Dan Larden, head of media at Isba, noted: “As yet, we don’t know how that choice will be presented to users.” He said the organisation would be “working closely” with Google to understand and assess the implications for brands.
Rosewell argued that “the devil is in the detail” in regard to Google’s commitment to improved user choice: “Google say that they’re going to be offering consumers an informed choice. What’s important is that this choice is truly informed, unbiased and applies equally to Google’s own properties as it does to other B2B and B2C providers.”
MOW will be writing to the CMA to “ensure this is in place before they think of letting Google off the commitments”, Rosewell added.
For publishers, Ben Foulkes, vice-president, digital, at Publicis Groupe adtech arm Epsilon, said business should continue “as usual”.
“They need to continue developing their first-party data strategies and reducing their reliance on walled gardens for both their traffic and customer relationship management,” he explained.
On the other hand, Rosewell warned that the “house of cards that’s been built up around [first-party solutions] could be falling down”. He implied that some — particularly smaller — publishers had been pursuing “hollow strategies” around first-party data that require people to willingly surrender personal information. This data is most useful to advertisers at scale and some publishers, such as The Independent, have signalled a willingness to partner with others on first-party data strategies to increase the value of pooled data.
“Were [publishers] genuinely gathering first-party data for strong business reasons or because they thought they had no other choice and were just jumping on the bandwagon?” Rosewell questioned. “Now publishers can work together along a collective for the common good for all their readers. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? But they’d have to put their differences aside.”
He continued: “Regulation is clearly working. [Publishers should] take some time and work out a strategy without the sword of Damocles hanging over.”
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