Apple will update the software that powers billions of iPhones around the world on Monday (26) with privacy features, though critics fear that will disrupt the world of Internet advertising.
Apple will require app developers to tell users what information they want to collect and get permission for, and display what it calls a “privacy nutrition label.
Apple’s initiative, which has been in the works for months, has sparked major disagreements with Facebook and other tech rivals and could have a major impact on data privacy and the mobile ecosystem.
Digital advertising is the lifeblood of Internet giants like Google and Facebook, and is considered the wellspring of free online content and services.
An update to the iOS software that powers the iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices brings with it the App Tracking Transparency Framework (ATT), under which it prevents apps from tracking users or accessing device identification without consent.
Apple’s message to developers this week is: “Unless you get user consent to track, this device has zero ad identifier values, and you may not be able to track them.”
Analysts: Or “disrupt” the app economy
Mobile Dev Memo analyst and strategist Eric Shuft said Apple’s new framework could “disrupt” the app economy and digital advertising more broadly, describing the new policy as a “transformative factor.
With more than 1 billion cell phones worldwide using iOS, any mobile operating system has the potential to effectively and significantly disrupt digital advertising.
Facebook Google revenue will be affected
Like Facebook and Google, who rely on advertising revenue, they can only obtain fees after pressing the market information. With little knowledge of the user, advertising becomes irrelevant, which means fewer clicks and less revenue.
With mobile apps and the Internet in general thriving by providing free information, games, driving directions, and much more, the revenue generated by advertising will keep the data centers running and the profits flowing.
Although some iPhone users may agree to tracking, marketers are concerned that many will instead opt for privacy.
Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi believes that advances in artificial intelligence and data analytics should help platforms and extended advertisers effectively use less user data as a target.
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