First-party data marketing strategy (Dr. Ye Wenhan)

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More articles by Dr. Ye Wenhan:Support EJ Tech

This articleauthorDr. Yip Man-honis the chairman of the Asian Marketing Technology Association and writes a column for the Hong Kong Economic Times“The Words of God“.

As global data privacy regulations become increasingly stringent, companies are facing unprecedented challenges. Governments around the world have introduced new regulations to protect user rights, which requires companies to quickly adapt to the new legal environment and ensure that their data collection and use processes meet the latest regulatory requirements. Transparency, user consent and data control will become the core principles of data processing. Companies not only need to comply with these regulations, but also actively participate in the formulation of industry standards to cope with the ever-changing regulatory environment.

Against this backdrop, Google recentlyAnnounceThe decision to stop phasing out third-party cookies has sparked widespread attention and discussion. As early as 2020, Google promised to gradually phase out this technology to improve user privacy protection. However, over time, this plan was postponed several times and eventually abandoned. The reversal of this policy highlights the complex balance between privacy and commercial interests, and shows the difficult choice between technological innovation and regulatory adaptation.

Google recently announced that it would no longer phase out third-party Cookies (digital stubs), a decision that has sparked widespread attention and discussion. (Reuters photo)

Third-party cookies have long been used to enable extensive online tracking by building profiles of users’ browsing habits across different websites. This practice facilitates the collection and commercialization of sensitive personal data without the user’s consent, raising major privacy concerns. In response to these issues, many web browsers, such as Firefox and Safari, have blocked third-party cookies by default since 2020 to enhance user privacy protection. This move is undoubtedly a major blow to the advertising industry, as advertisers rely on this information to accurately target the market.

Although Google’s proposed Privacy Sandbox alternative aims to balance user privacy and advertising revenue, its testing has faced fierce criticism. Studies have shown that this solution may lead to a reduction of up to 60% in publishers’ revenue. In addition, regulators such as the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have also questioned this, worrying that these changes may distort competition in the advertising technology market. This series of challenges forced Google to finally give up on eliminating third-party cookies and instead allow users to choose cross-browser tracking and profile preferences.

In this case, advertisers need to rethink their future advertising strategies. With the continuation of third-party cookies, the industry’s uncertainty about its alternatives has increased. Experts agree that turning to first-party data will become a strategic focus in the future. First-party data refers to data obtained directly from consumers by companies. This type of data not only improves the targeting of advertisements, but also enhances user trust. At the same time, over-reliance on third-party data will expose companies to greater compliance risks.

First-party data has become a key asset for future development. Companies need to actively invest to ensure that their data processing methods comply with the latest regulatory requirements. In this era of rapid digital development, the advertising industry must continue to innovate to meet user needs and achieve effective marketing while complying with privacy protection. In response to changes in the industry, companies need to constantly adjust their strategies to remain invincible in future competition.