Google is dropping plans to eliminate cookies from its Chrome web browser, making a sudden U-turn on four years of work to phase out the technology that tracks users for ad purposes.

Google is dropping plans to eliminate cookies from its Chrome web browser, making a sudden U-turn on four years of work to phase out a technology that helps businesses tracks users online.

The company had been working on retiring third-party cookies, which are snippets of code that log user information, as part of an effort to overhaul user privacy options on Chrome. But the proposal, also known as Privacy Sandbox, had instilled fears in the online advertising industry that any replacement technology would leave even less room for online ad rivals.

In a blog post on Monday, Google said it decided to abandon the plan after considering the impact of the changes on publishers, advertisers and “everyone involved in online advertising.”

The U.K.'s primary competition regulator, which has been involved in oversight of the Privacy Sandbox project, said Google will, instead, give users the option to block or allow third-party cookies on the browser.

  • Viking_Hippie@lemmy.world
    411·
    4 months ago

    Google said it decided to abandon the plan after considering the impact of the changes on publishers, advertisers and “everyone involved in online advertising.”

    This is like a landlord scrapping plans to add curtains or blinds after considering the impact on peeping Toms and forgoing a lock on the back door after consulting with burglars.

  • SkyNTP@lemmy.ml
    32·
    4 months ago

    Back in my day, the Internet was a testament to human ingenuity, determination and spirit, as noteworthy as the Manhatten project or the pyramids, not just synonym for one of Google’s crappy products that will inevitably end up in the Google graveyard.

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.caOP
      16·
      4 months ago

      I got my first email address in '97. Still use it today.

      Back then the net was incredible. You could find cool groups to join and discover stuff you never knew before. I miss that.

  • Melody Fwygon@lemmy.oneEnglish
    20·
    4 months ago

    This is Google’s way of throwing a fit. They’ve been thwarted at every attempt to replace cookies with something WAY MORE creepy and WORSE by privacy advocates.

    They’re quickly realizing that people will not give advertisers free reign anymore.

  • 9point6@lemmy.world
    153·
    4 months ago

    Way to go completely missing the point, Associated Press.

    You’re supposed to be neutral, yet this is the biggest load of corporate cock gargling I’ve ever read

    Edit: for context, what they were pushing as a replacement was way worse