Just when you thought you were getting to grips with the changes Google is making to third-party cookies from January next year, Apple steps in and disrupts digital identity too, with changes that look likely to kick-in far sooner.
What is happening and why?
Apple has announced significant and important changes to the way identity and permissions are managed on its platform. Hogging the headlines is the app level opt-in to identity tracking. Users will be presented with an Apple-controlled
pop-up the first time they use each of their apps: ‘This app would like permission to track you across apps and websites owned by other companies’ is the likely wording. When the user denies this request, it removes a great deal of functionality around the IDFA (identifier for advertisers), the identifier used within the Apple app ecosystem. The IDFA is used extensively in advertising, often as the backbone of targeting, tracking and measurement.
No one knows how many people will opt out, but the view is that it will be at least 50%, if not a lot higher. Certainly enough to break down the ecosystem built around IDFAs.
