In contrast to Chrome’s very public, very delayed deadline to remove third-party cookies, Android has been flying under the radar with its Privacy Sandbox. But the public beta of Android’s Privacy Sandbox is set to take place in early 2023, a signal that Google’s ad ID (GAID) will likely eventually be phased out.
Rather than sharing a specific end date for GAID, Google said (back in February, mind you) it will support its ad ID for “at least two years.” Think of it as a reverse-psychology deadline.What’s notable about the Android Privacy Sandbox, our managing editor, Allison Schiff, notes, is how little public drama there’s been.
By contrast, selecting the W3C as the venue for developing its web-focused APIs within the Chrome Privacy Sandbox was a recipe for controversy. Working groups within the W3C can be slow-moving, and members are often hostile to advertising. Back in early 2020, it wasn’t uncommon to hear stories about web browsers battling it out as ad tech companies sought to make their points of view known (and spent valuable time explaining the basics of web advertising).
But mobile is a different animal.
Although three of the four proposed APIs in the Android Privacy Sandbox are inspired by APIs in the Chrome version (Topics, FLEDGE and attribution reporting), one API stands out – and closes some important privacy loopholes. SDK Runtime, as the API is called, will stop third-party SDKs from automatically inheriting the permissions granted to their host app, which should help put an end to a large amount of unauthorized data collection and sharing.
Then, in the second half of the episode, we talk about what’s become a broken-record topic in connected TV: transparency. Buyers want to know where they’re buying their streamed ads, especially as these ads become a larger (and more expensive) share of their buys – but this information is not forthcoming.
The call for better measurement is the background track, but it’s getting louder. From iSpot’s investment in TVision to Tremor’s investment in a Hisense subsidiary, ACR data is prized more than ever. As economic uncertainty continues, connected TV sellers and tech providers may be more motivated to finally provide buyers what they want.
