Data + Privacy

Keep the cookies; hold for consent. We unpack Google’s reversal on third-party cookies and what it means for the ad industry, which was preparing for a cookieless future.

When Google announced its plan to remove cookies from Chrome, whispers of an apocalypse echoed across the ad industry. Many feared this change would disrupt the $120 billion in ad spending that currently relies on cookies. Words like “demise” and “unprecedented” appeared in headlines.  And then Google surprised us with its latest announcement: Cookies are […]

Google has hit the brakes on its plan to eliminate third-party cookies.  Instead of phasing out third-party cookies by default, Google now says it will offer Chrome users new privacy controls, allowing them to opt into or out of cookie tracking at the browser level in a more straightforward way.  But the industry shouldn’t let […]

The controversy regarding ID bridging in the bidstream can only be one of two things: confusion over how the ecosystem has evolved or overvigilance at the expense of publishers who are under attack like never before. The concept of ID bridging has long been the foundation of programmatic advertising. What is cookie matching but an […]

During a panel at the recent Cannes Lions, Tracy-Ann Lim, chief media officer at JPMorgan Chase, put it simply: “Winter is coming from a data privacy standpoint.”  In late April, Google delayed third-party cookie deprecation for the third time, extending what has now been a five-year waiting game into 2025. Does this latest delay mean […]

We set the scene for Google’s upcoming antitrust trial in September, including details from the recently released witness list, a who’s who of the ad tech world.

Periodically, the worlds of advertising and partisan politics collide. An impassioned and often politicized debate has taken center stage around the value of walled garden content moderation. There are those who proclaim that any initiative aimed at tackling harmful content on digital media platforms – and how advertising monetizes this content – infringes on freedom […]

The traditional media operating model is broken, demanding more money, time and resources as brands scale. Outdated metrics like CPMs and CTRs can hinder efficiency, while media fragmentation makes finding the right metrics tricky.  But it doesn’t have to be this way. Digital media standardization can make practices, formats and metrics consistent across platforms. Aligning […]

When it comes to managing identity, change and uncertainty can feel paralyzing these days. Will regulators start requiring more data-sharing opt-ins? How far will Google’s and Apple’s limitations on the IP address go? Will all the privacy disclosures and requests for data push consumers to say they’ve had enough? Rather than preparing for a single […]

The Big Story is celebrating its 300th episode! Back when we started recording The Big Story in 2018, Oracle had just acquired Grapeshot, its last nine-figure advertising acquisition. It would only take another six years for its advertising business to enter a decline and then get the axe on an earnings call on June 12. […]