Google’s plans to remove third-party cookies from Chrome are set to be delayed, after the tech giant announced it was delaying the scheme. The delay will give Google more time to work with regulators to ensure everything runs smoothly and will also give the rest of the industry the chance to make sure their cookieless solutions are up to scratch. We spoke with senior leaders across the industry to find out what these changes mean.
Integral Ad Science (IAS) CMO Tony Marlow
“With Google’s announcement delaying the deprecation of third-party cookies, marketers have even more opportunity to be proactive and prepare their strategies for a post-cookie world. If there’s one critical takeaway from the past year, it’s the rising importance of context in marketing strategies. I would urge brands to adopt the latest technology to control the context of their ad campaigns to stay ahead of the curve as they plan for changes to third-party cookies. Test, learn and make sure your strategy matches your brand values. Based on the past few months, a significant shift from audience-based targeting to contextual targeting is already well underway. Data and sophisticated technology are coming together to enable the industry to move in the right direction. More advertisers and publishers are integrating contextual strategies to optimize their digital media quality, especially as the focus on consumer privacy increases. This week’s news should be a call to action for every marketer and publisher to consider how they can make every impression count.”
Adobe VP, Experience Cloud Product and Strategy Amit Ahuja
“Moving away from third party cookies and toward first party data puts consumers in control of how their data is used, while companies can deliver real-time experiences that are most relevant to consumers. Google’s delay gives brands more time, but it won’t change this trend. First party data is the future of brand-consumer relationships built on trust—not just for advertising, but for all digital experiences. Our customers understand the urgency in making this shift and we are partnering with them on next gen customer data platforms that focus on first party data and connect disparate data across the organization.”
Blis CTO Aaron McKee
“This seems to be quite a turnaround from Google, but there have been inklings of it emerging over the past few weeks with their statements about following the guidance of the whole world. With Google increasingly under the microscope, perhaps they decided to move ahead with their original timeline. The additional two years, including the late 2022 phasing, is more of a ‘stay of execution’ than a true respite. The downside is that marketers, and the whole industry, will face another two years of limbo with significant uncertainty over what comes next and how viable it’ll be. It also continues to raise the question of whether Google should be unilaterally defining the tech to replace third-party cookies versus the industry working together to be ready for this privacy-first world and to create viable solutions that put the consumer first.
Acoustic CMO Norman Guadagno
“Companies like Google making decisions that have such far-reaching implications without fully consulting with every part of the complex ecosystem are now seeing pushback. Technology can change faster than the larger advertising and marketing ecosystem, so it’s important to think about what we can do as an industry to ensure that the implications of those changes are really understood. The big shift is in consumer privacy and expectations—and consumer voice really needs to have an equal seat at the table around changes like this.”
