A turning point in the digital advertising world is approaching – Google Chrome has started blocking third-party cookies. This move marks a fundamental shift in the online advertising landscape. Third-party cookies have been the backbone of online advertising. They allowed advertising networks to collect user data across different domains – provided the domain owner consented.
Google has now started blocking these cookies in its Chrome browser. This process, which has already been announced and postponed several times, currently affects 1% of Chrome users, i.e. around 30 million people. This blocking will be extended to all users by the end of the year.
While Google is taking this step under the guise of data protection, it cannot be overlooked that the company is also pursuing its own interests. With the dominance of Android and Chrome, Google controls a large portion of internet access. First-hand user data, such as that Google obtains from web searches, increases in value. The good news for our industry: SEO will tend to become more relevant.