10 % of third-party cookies, is it still useful?”: what Google’s announcement on third-party cookies changes, and what it doesn’t

In a blog post published on Monday, July 22, Google announced that it will not give up on third-party cookies and intends to “implement a new experience in Chrome that will allow users to make an informed choice that applies to their entire web browsing,” explained Anthony Chavez, Vice President of Google in charge of the Privacy Sandbox solution. Why such a turnaround, what does it mean, and what are the consequences for advertisers and the entire ecosystem? Two of the top market experts share their insights to decode this decision: Guilhem Bodin, Partner and media issues expert, and Adrien Hug-Korda, Digital Trust & Compliance Director at Converteo.

Why is Google’s announcement coming now?

Guilhem Bodin – It is not surprising that Google has ultimately made this decision, given the concerns expressed by regulatory authorities, both at the European Commission and by the Competition and Markets Authority in the United Kingdom (CMA). The same sentiment has emerged from the digital advertising industry in recent months following initial tests of the Privacy Sandbox, particularly at Criteo and Index Exchange. The general consensus was that the proposed alternatives did not meet all market expectations.

We do not yet know what the solution mentioned by Anthony Chavez will look like, but the choice will be left to the user to accept or reject cookies at the browser level. Therefore, we can expect a further decline in consent rates (opt-in). In a theoretical approach resembling Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) on iOS, the consent rate could be between 20% and 30%. With a market share of just under 60% in France, this would mean that third-party cookies persist for about 10% of users.

Adrien Hug-Korda – The announcement of a future solution at the browser level allowing users to make an informed choice is also not surprising. This has actually been a possibility considered for a long time by the European legislator: this avenue was already discussed during the last evolution of the ePrivacy directive back in 2009 and is reiterated in France by Article 82 of the Data Protection Act. However, the CNIL expressed its views on this matter in its 2020 guidelines, stating that browsers did not actually allow for the collection of valid consent, particularly because it was impossible to define choices at the browser level “by purpose,” that is, by category of cookies.

Google will therefore need to collaborate again with regulatory authorities to evolve its browser to meet the requirements of the ePrivacy/GDPR duo. This process is likely to be complex and time-consuming.

Are advertisers trying to prepare for the end of third-party cookies: does this announcement change anything?

AHK – It would be a mistake for advertisers who have already begun their transition to a “cookieless” environment to put everything on hold, as nothing has actually changed: third-party cookies are not a sustainable solution for digital marketing.

In fact, certain browsers, such as Firefox and Safari, have long deployed features that drastically limit the use of third-party cookies, affecting approximately one-third of internet users in France, and even more so for companies in certain sectors like luxury.

Moreover, while the long-postponed deadline for the deprecation of third-party cookies in Chrome seems to have disappeared for now, the alternative solution mentioned by Google will also significantly impact the performance of tracking solutions based on third-party cookies.

GBO – The reality of user consent for third-party cookies in 2024 effectively excludes 30% to 50% of internet users who cannot be linked to a marketing action.

When you add to this the very unreliable, if not nearly impossible, tracking of so-called cross-domain, cross-browser, and cross-device journeys, and more generally the omnichannel nature of customer journeys, it is clear that continuing to consider third-party cookies as the be-all and end-all of tracking is a strategic error that should not be made.

Advertisers are compelled to continue working on their “cookieless” initiatives.

What are the main alternatives to third-party cookies currently?

GBO – Advertisers must continue to test and adopt new solutions for measurement, optimization, and advertising targeting.

Regarding measurement, as the market is fragmented based on devices, browsers, and consent, data is absolutely central, and there is a need to model it using methodologies known as Marketing Mix Modeling. It is important to conduct A/B tests within platforms and to build re-attribution approaches through modeling.

In the daily optimization of campaigns, all platforms require more signals for effective management and optimization; thus, it is essential to continue deploying server-side approaches and activate CRM data, which necessitates being more agile with first-party data. My advice: do not delay in accelerating your Customer Data Platform initiatives.

Finally, concerning advertising targeting, while historical retargeting methods based on cookies may persist, they are likely to lose significant relevance due to low volumes. The interest in Universal IDs and Privacy Sandbox solutions for prospective targeting or retargeting remains entirely credible and should continue to be tested across all relevant advertising platforms. Our advice is to master the testing process to confirm the relevance of targeting and the capabilities for personalizing messages.

AHK – The main advertising platforms already offer measurement and targeting solutions based on advertisers’ first-party data (such as a user’s email address). These solutions present numerous advantages: the identifiers used are more durable than third-party cookies and allow for reconciling events from different environments, such as in-store conversions that were driven by online advertising exposure.

Additionally, these solutions can be deployed server-side, meaning through a proxy server controlled by the advertiser before sharing the (hashed) data with their media partners. As a result, this solution provides advertisers with greater control and better visibility over how their users’ data is used by advertising platforms compared to solutions based on third-party cookies.

GBO – For retail media players, Google’s decision likely offers a bit of respite; they can project themselves a little longer before reaching saturation with their third-party cookies. However, the challenges remain significant for anyone looking to effectively address and personalize messages for consumers using Safari, for example, or outside of any consent framework.

Key Takeaways

Ultimately, is Google not accelerating the end of third-party cookies? What purpose could a cookie serve that only reaches 10% of the French population? Without a timeline or details on the proposed solution, advertisers remain completely in the dark. What is certain is that if the regulator approves Google’s approach, the impact could come very quickly, especially given the nearly monthly updates of the Chrome browser.

At Converteo, we are convinced that advertisers must continue to transform their marketing by:

• Structuring the main projects for optimizing user data collection and consent in an omnichannel world,
• Rethinking the use of customer data with greater agility,
• Centralizing all marketing data to rethink the use cases for measuring the attribution of activations.