Google promises to phase out third-party cookies in Chrome, but it doesn’t. The company promised to push and then 2024. We got some When Google disables cookies , but these efforts stalled. Now the company is saying that .
It’s easy to drag Google for this, but it’s completely out of the company’s hands. The tech giant is working closely with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to ensure that any tool it deploys to replace the tracking and measurement capabilities of a cookie is anti-competitive. The tools are collectively known as the Privacy Sandbox, and Google says it will have to wait until the CMA has had “sufficient time to review” the results of industry tests, which will be submitted by the end of June.
Google’s Privacy Sandbox has caused some controversy in recent years. There are suggested remedies adtech companies, publishers, and ad agencies don’t adequately replace traditional cookies, citing them as difficult to work with and giving Google too much power. To that end, the company said it recognizes “ongoing challenges in reconciling differing opinions from industry, regulators and developers.” This is another reason to delay until next year.
The CMA is not the only regulatory body focusing on the current iteration of these Privacy Sandbox tools. The UK-based Information Commissioner’s Office produced a report showing that these tools can be used by advertisers to identify consumers. .
Those in the advertising industry want to see cookies given at a higher level, despite complaints about the Privacy Sandbox. Drew Stein, CEO adtech data firm AudigentIt’s time for Google to “deliver on the promise of a better ecosystem” by implementing plans to eliminate third-party cookies, he told Engadget.
On the other hand, the CMA has expressed its willingness to keep third-party cookies in play, especially if Google’s solution does more harm than good. Craig Jenkins, the CMA’s director of digital markets, said recently that the organization would delay the introduction of Privacy Sandbox tools “unless we are satisfied that we can address the concerns”. . We will see what happens in 2025.
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