Tech giant, Google, has said it will no longer phase out third-party cookies as earlier planned, opting instead for a privacy sandbox approach.
Google’s U-turn follows concerns from advertisers, who have argued that the loss of cookies in the world’s most popular browser will limit their ability to collect information for personalizing ads, making them dependent on Google’s user databases.
Cookies are small pieces of data that a website sends to a user’s browser, which are often used to record browsing activity for advertising purposes. Removing the third-party cookies was expected to give Chrome browser users data privacy.
However, Google said it would now rather let users make informed choices on third-party cookies through its privacy settings.
What Google is saying
Announcing the new development via a blog post, Vice President of the Google-backed Privacy Sandbox initiative, Anthony Chavez, said:
“We are proposing an updated approach that elevates user choice. 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.”
“We’ll continue to make the Privacy Sandbox APIs available and invest in them to further improve privacy and utility. We also intend to offer additional privacy controls, so we plan to introduce IP Protection into Chrome’s Incognito mode,” he added.
Privacy sandbox
Chavez said Google has developed the Privacy Sandbox with the goal of finding innovative solutions that meaningfully improve online privacy while preserving an ad-supported internet that supports a vibrant ecosystem of publishers, connects businesses with customers, and offers everyone free access to a wide range of content.
According to him, throughout the process of building the sandbox, Google had received feedback from a wide variety of stakeholders, including regulators like the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), publishers, web developers and standards groups, civil society, and participants in the advertising industry.
“This feedback has helped us craft solutions that aim to support a competitive and thriving marketplace that works for publishers and advertisers, and encourage the adoption of privacy-enhancing technologies,” he said.
What you should know
The cancellation of the cookies phaseout brought to an end the back and forth that has led to Google shifting its deadline three times amid concerns over anti-competitiveness.
In April this year, Google announced the third shift of the planned action to 2025, citing the need to give regulators some time. At that time, the company said it was working with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which was conducting a review of its practices.
Earlier in February, the CMA ordered Google to halt its phase-out of cookies until it had addressed anticompetitive concerns.
Specifically, publishers and ad tech companies prompted the CMA to investigate concerns that the Privacy Sandbox gives preferences to the market position of Google’s ad products, especially Google Ad Manager.
Google’s decision to phase out cookies echoes moves by Apple Inc., which shook up the digital ad market in 2021 by restricting advertisers’ access to user data in its operating system.