Impact of 3rd Party Cookie Blocking on Ad Revenues: What our Data Shows

June 10, 2020
Publir Staff
Ads, Monetization

Our proprietary data, tracking publisher ad CPMs on individual devices and browsers, has given us a unique, comprehensive picture as to the precise effects that cookieless browsers have had on rates.

Browser Background Information

Chrome is the world’s most used browser and is still using third-party cookies. However, Google has said that it will end Chrome’s use of third-party cookies entirely by 2022.

In 2017, Apple gradually began increasing cookie restrictions that started with the introduction of Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP). By March 2020, Apple had blocked all third-party cookies by default for all users with the release of Safari 13.1.

Firefox, beginning in June 2019, enabled their Enhanced Tracking Protection by default for all new users. This feature blocks third-party cookies, making it much harder for advertising and tech companies to track a Firefox user.

Edge, unlike Firefox, does not block third-party cookies by default. There is no tracking protection in Edge’s private-browsing mode either.

2020 Usage by Browser*

* Based on data from Publir’s client reaching more than 30 million monthly unique users, mostly US-based.

Safari browsers

We found that a small percentage of people on iPad are still using the older version of Safari that allows for third-party cookie tracking. This version of Safari had a CPM 3x higher than the CPM for users with Safari 13 that does not allow for third-party cookies on the same device. Similarly, for iPhone Safari users, the pre-third party cookie blocking browsers generated a CPM that was 2.5x higher than the CPM by Safari 13.

Chrome browsers

According to our data, the ad CPM for Chrome users, despite the device type, are significantly greater than those generated on post-third party cookie Safari browsers. We also found that the ad CPM for Mac Chrome users was similar to that of pre-third party cookie blocking Safari browsers. Our data also indicates that:

The latest version of Windows Chrome browser CPM was 3x that of the Windows Firefox CPM.
The latest version of iPhone Chrome CPM was 2.8x that of the latest version of iPhone Safari 13 CPM.
The latest version of iPad Chrome CPM was 3x that of the latest version of iPad Safari CPM.
The latest version of desktop Mac Chrome CPM was 3.6x that of the latest version of desktop Mac Safari CPM.

Publisher ad revenue is largely affected by the browser choice of their users. For the browsers in which third-party cookie tracking is enabled, such as the older version of Safari and current versions of Chrome, CPMs are significantly higher than all browsers that have disabled third-party cookie usage. We estimate that if Google blocks third-party cookies by default in Chrome as expected in 2022, this could result in revenue declines of up to 40% unless publishers implement measures to mitigate this loss.

Check out what Publir’s doing to prepare for the deprecation of Chrome’s third-party cookies here.

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Digital Monetization Update – February 3, 2022

1. Google Ad Revenue Surges 33% In 2021 Q4 (MediaPost) In the fourth quarter of 2021, Google’s overall ad revenue increased by 33% to $61.2 billion, above analysts’ expectations by 4%. Search advertising increased by 35% to $43 billion, and Google’s YouTube increased by 25% to $8.6 billion. YouTube’s ad dollar increases in the quarter eclipsed Netflix’s $7.7 billion in subscription revenue. 2. Meta Shares Plunge 20% As It Feels Heat From Apple And TikTok (AdAge) Apple’s recent privacy reforms and competition from firms like TikTok, might start to wear on Meta’s ad platform. Meta’s ad revenue in the first quarter of this year will be between $27 billion and $29 billion, representing a 3% to 11% growth year over year. In after-hours trading, Meta shares fell more than 20% due to the bleak forecast. 3. Gaming Companies Are Merging With Ad Tech For Real Reasons (AdExchanger) In the year 2021, there was tremendous consolidation in the ad tech industry. The combination of gaming companies with ad tech platforms is one especially noticeable little trend that is gaining traction. The objective behind the change is to replace old cookie-based technology with first-party data, which is the future of advertising. 4. Spotify Declares Itself To Be A Creator Company Now (TheVerge) Spotify announced its quarterly numbers at a particularly difficult period for the firm. Its monthly active users increased by 18% year on year to 406 million, while paid customers increased to 180 million. Spotify CEO Daniel Ek aspires to achieve 50 million creators who will profit from the platform. 5. Regulators Find Europe’s Ad Tech Industry Acted Unlawfully (Engadget) Data protection experts from throughout the European Union have determined that Europe’s ad tech business has been functioning unlawfully for years. The judgment, issued by Belgium’s APD (.PDF) and backed by authorities throughout the EU, determined that the industry’s underpinning system breached a number of GDPR standards. 6. NortonLifeLock Launches Feature To Protect Social Media Accounts (MediaPost) Norton LifeLock, a software and cybersecurity firm, announced a new feature to help users better safeguard their social media accounts against harmful attacks. In 2021, the number of people on social media has risen to 4.48 billion, accounting for more than half of the world’s population (56.8%). As the user increases, so will the number of threats. 7. Big Tech Boycotts Tend To Be Short-Lived (Axios) Boycotts of tech services have become increasingly common as political division and dissatisfaction with misinformation have grown. However, evidence shows that boycotts and the media attention they generate are usually short-lived. Even the most virulent boycotts have little influence beyond a single news cycle on Big Tech giants.
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