Google Delays Third-Party Cookie Blocking

In effort to allow more time for the advertising community to develop stable alternatives to third-party cookies, Google has made modifications to their original schedule to discontinue support for third-party cookies in Chrome. Today, the search giant announced it has delayed its plan to remove its widely used web tracking technology.

Google said the delay “will allow sufficient time for public discussion on the right solutions, continued engagement with regulators, and for publishers and the advertising industry to migrate their services.” Once the testing phase is finalized, the ad industry will have nine months to migrate their services beginning in late 2022. Then, a three-month phaseout of the cookie will conclude the process in late 2023.

So, everyone breathe. This is good news – on all fronts – as it somewhat steadies the playing field! It slows the chaos and uncertainty that’s plagued the advertising world since the original announcement; it allows the regulatory boards to scrutinize the process a little further; and it shows the public that Google and the rest of the publishing and advertising world are still committed to their privacy.

Now what does this mean for business owners and marketers? What can they expect moving forward? Well, it simply means that publishers, advertisers and the agencies that represent them have more time to prepare for the inevitable. They still need to adopt privacy compliant alternatives, establish direct relationships and invest in actionable and legitimately sourced first-party data. Returning to business as usual or being complacent may be a costly mistake.

"The only thing that has changed is the industry now has more time to prepare,” said Multiview’s Chief Strategy Officer, Yariv Drori. “Augmenting first-party data, investing in high-quality contextual advertising and leveraging publisher relations still stand.”

Contextual advertising offers a safe alternative to third-party cookies and is proven to have a greater impact on ad effectiveness than audience or channel data. Now, we focus more on what content consumers are engaged with at any given moment rather than the browsing data collected by cookies, thus opening a new door into browsing behavior and ad readiness.

You see? There’s always another way to look at a situation. Just because you don’t have cookies doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a nice brownie.

But the bottom line, according to Drori, is this: “If marketers choose to drag their feet and stay complacent, they're missing opportunity."

Interested in diving deeper into what Drori believes the future holds for targeted digital advertising, what impact data privacy laws will have on advertisers, and what post-cookie marketing means for you, check out this interview.

If you find yourself like many business owners and marketers these days, and are in a panic over what’s to come of digital advertising or how you’ll be able to continue to reach audiences online with relevant, meaningful messaging, look no further than the digital advertising experts here at Multiview.

Perhaps now is a great time to consider adding contextual advertising to your marketing plan and begin utilizing first-party data sources -- like Multiview’s expansive network of 1,200 association publications that reach 30 industries. Connect with us to explore cookie-less advertising solutions today!