It took Google nine days to explain its pushback against the IAB Tech Lab’s assessment. Criticisms are now detailed in a 28-page response.
Google has released a detailed response to claims made about Privacy Sandbox in a recent report by the IAB Tech Lab. In a brief statement to which the response was attached, Google said:
“(T)he analysis contains many misunderstandings and inaccuracies, which we consider important to correct in order to provide accurate information to the ecosystem. Overall, the report appears to ignore the broader objective of Privacy Sandbox to enhance user privacy while supporting effective digital advertising.”
Google
The IAB Tech Lab assessment identified several problems advertisers and media companies may face using the proffered solution, including the abandonment of event-based impression and click metrics and the need for significant changes within the programmatic advertising ecosystem.
Why we care. Google seemed caught off guard by the Tech Lab’s scathing commentary, issuing only a very brief email response on the day it appeared. It has obviously been working hard since: The new response runs to 28 pages of detailed criticism. Will the IAB respond?
Google’s Privacy Sandbox has taken a beating recently, not least from the U.K. government’s Competition and Markets Authority instructing Google not to deprecate third-party cookies until a series of objections had been resolved. Is anyone putting money on cookies being gone by year-end?
Google’s chief complaints. Google singled out four main areas in the Tech Lab report as objectionable:
- Corrections to assumptions or use case gaps that are supported by the Privacy Sandbox APIs.
- Use cases that are currently not supported by third-party cookies and are thus out of scope.
- Feedback and/or proposals that could potentially recreate cross-site tracking and go against privacy-preserving goals.
- Areas where the solution should be determined by the ad tech provider (not the browser or platform) or where the ad tech provider needs to adapt new tactics building on top of Privacy Sandbox.
Google said that it would welcome additional feature requests and possible improvement suggestions from the IAB Tech Lab adding that it would continue to move forward with the plan to phase out third-party cookies in 2024, “subject to addressing any remaining competition concerns from the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority.” Google’s full response is here.
Additional reporting by Nicola Agius