Google and UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have announced their partnership to improve digital ad targeting. The initiative titled Privacy Sandbox will be committed to developing new ad tools to further protect a users’ privacy and avoid covert tracking of data. Google revealed that the partnership comes after the regulatory board filed an investigation on the Privacy Sandbox in January and decided to work with CMA to reach an optimal resolution on ad targeting.
In a recent official statement, CMA revealed the reasons behind the investigation which included many other companies raising concerns over the initiative:
“The CMA was concerned that, without regulatory oversight and scrutiny, Google’s alternatives could be developed and implemented in ways that impede competition in digital advertising markets. This would cause advertising spending to become even more concentrated on Google, harming consumers who ultimately pay for the cost of advertising. It would also undermine the ability of online publishers such as newspapers to generate revenue and continue to produce valuable content in the future.”
After discussions between Facebook and CMA, Facebook announced a series of commitments which will also be forwarded to companies to collect feedback over the Privacy Sandbox initiative. The commitments, if accepted, will be applied globally across the platform. The commitments made by Google include: transparency and consultation with third parties, non-discrimination and standstill before the removal of third-party cookies.
The CMA will be welcoming consultations until July 8 after which it will announce its decision on the commitments for Google’s Privacy Sandbox.