It might barely be a week old, but the reviews are already starting to come in for Apple’s latest iOS update.
In case you missed it, the iOS 14.5 update has been billed as a privacy-focused software update for Apple devices, with the introduction of the App Tracking Transparency framework now asking for users to give their explicit consent before they can be tracked for advertising.
Opt-in or opt-out?
One of the biggest concerns for advertisers has been the total number of people that will consent to having their data used by marketers.
Some have argued that the language used by Apple in the prompt is dissuasive and will likely steer users to opt-out of all tracking.
Before the introduction of iOS 14.5, it was predicted that opt-in rates could range from anywhere between 0 and 35 per cent.
It’s still early days, but there is now some data available to reflect the willingness of users to opt-in to data tracking.
Verizon Media-owned analytics platform Flurry has started releasing daily opt-in rates on the percentage of users that are allowing app tracking.
Globally, opt-in rates have hovered between 11 and 13 per cent following the launch of iOS 14.5. In the United States, however, this was considerably lower, ranging from 2 per cent to 5 per cent.
It is important to note that it is still early days when it comes to iOS 14.5 and that many users would not have yet updated their operating systems.
Facebook for free?
Facebook has launched its own charm offensive since iOS 14.5 started rolling out, encouraging users to opt-in to data tracking.
Both Facebook and Instagram are now displaying a message that tells users opting-in to tracking will “help keep Facebook/Instagram free of charge”.
And it begins. @Facebook / @Instagram explore additional scare tactics to combat @Apple iOS14 #ATT privacy changes.
“Help keep Facebook free of charge” pic.twitter.com/mOB9WJpz9A
— ashkan soltani (@ashk4n) April 30, 2021
Although it seems unlikely Facebook would ever start charging users to use its services, the message is just another indication of how seriously Facebook is taking these changes.
Digital advertising stands to win
Reload Media general manager Alex Gannon has spoken out in support of the iOS 14.5 privacy update, suggesting that a more privacy-compliant digital advertising ecosystem will benefit everyone involved.
“The general trend that a user’s privacy is now being put at the heart of these sorts of updates is a welcome one, both for consumers and for brands alike. It will reward those advertisers who create great products, provide excellent customer service and market those benefits effectively,” she said.
Marketers have previously complained that they were not given enough time to prepare for these changes – so much so that the original rollout of the ATT framework was pushed back a number of months.
Reload Media’s Senior Digital Marketing Consultant Alex Mccan said there is still time to finalise plans.
“Advertisers who haven’t prepared for the update still have the opportunity to retroactively do so by verifying their domain, choosing which events they want to track and running attribution benchmarking,” Mccan said.
Adjusting marketing strategies to better reflect the importance of privacy will likely serve as a benefit in the long-term, suggested Reload Media’s head of social Dan Howe.
“It’s highly likely that this isn’t the last privacy-focused change ecommerce and digital advertisers will need to adapt to,” said Howe.
“Advertisers and brands who provide genuine value to users to secure first party data will benefit greatly in the long-term as we continue towards a privacy-centric web.”
