The new restriction of Apple’s device IDFA for iOS 14 to increase consumer privacy, adds another hurdle in how the advertising industry interacts with users. Kochava CEO, Charles Manning isn’t surprised. He’s been tracking the direction of travel when it comes to privacy for some time. For Manning, it’s a matter of privacy by design…
While the industry seems to be in a bit of an uproar about Apple’s announcement about its privacy initiatives at their Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) this week, I can say with great confidence it comes as little surprise to Kochava. Apple’s news of restricting the availability of the IDFA—the industry’s longtime device identifier for advertisers on iOS — forcing them and related ad tech companies to rethink how they measure campaigns and understand user behavior is one of many industry pivots we have seen since the beginning of this year.
Apple will now require publishers, advertisers, and related entities to request user permission to track them, among other privacy initiatives protecting consumer data and identity. We are an ecosystem in transition but fully prepared to work diligently through the changes as we continue to put the privacy of user data at the forefront. As a leading attribution provider and long-standing partner with Apple, our mission aligns with theirs.
Let’s Recap What We Know from The Recent News:
In addition to the opt-in prompt for IDFA access, Apple intends to use the SKAdNetwork to inform advertisers about attribution on ads displayed on iOS devices for those publishers that are registered with SKAdNetwork.
Marketers will know an install occurred, but they won’t be able to connect a specific install with a specific device, thus preserving privacy. Because the SKAdNetwork was just formally referenced this week, there is no available inventory that is SKAdNetwork ‘ready’ and it’s unclear what will be available and when.
Although this is a major change in an industry increasingly being forced to focus on consumer privacy, the release of Apple’s resettable IDFA and Limit Ad Tracking (LAT) in previous years hinted that it would further restrict outside parties from an addressable identifier for distinct devices.
…those of us looking ahead at the direction of the industry have been preparing to solve for consumer identity in the absence of traditional device identifiers.
The announcement comes amidst Google’s countdown to the end of the cookie, and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), so advertisers have already been inundated with major industry changes coming to the mainstream way of marketing, measuring, and retargeting.
However, those of us looking ahead at the direction of the industry have been preparing to solve for consumer identity in the absence of traditional device identifiers. For some time now, we’ve been incorporating privacy by design and developing alternative but unique mechanisms for identity and providing tools for user consent.
How Do We See the Future?
Kochava is prepared to support the ecosystem through several ongoing innovations. These include providing identity solutions, enabling contextual targeting (where no stable identifiers are used cross-property), and through frameworks like SKAdNetwork and XCHNG. We are working closely with clients, partners, and the ecosystem at large on several solutions that will allow our clients to have a competitive advantage.
In preparation for the end of the cookie and increased limitation of the IDFA, alternative consumer identity solutions are now more important than ever. At Kochava, we read the writing on the wall several years ago and began compiling identity solutions that are not reliant on a platform-specific advertising ID.
We knew that to perform more effective and reliable attribution and measurement and create a holistic view of the consumer journey, we needed to look beyond the reliance on an IDFA. Several solutions already exist within Kochava to aid marketers in identifying consumers with the data they have. Concerning the restriction of the IDFA, here is a list of available solutions to maintain consumer privacy and in some cases enhance the understanding of audiences.
+ There are no comments
Add yours