Google Working On Cookie Alternative

Google is working on an alternative ad tracking system that could potentially replace cookies.



Cookies are used by advertisers and web sites to track your web history, so that they can tailor adverts based on your possible shopping interests.

Google Cookies with Sesame Street Cookie Monster
Google is working on a system called “AdID”, which would allow them to abandon the cookie system completely. It is currently the only browser that allows all cookies as the default setting.

Rival companies to Google’s Chrome have all taken a stand against cookies, with Microsoft’s default setting in Internet Explorer being “do not track” and Apple’s Safari browser blocking third-party cookies altogether.

For browser makers, maintaing a robust cookie environment offers little financial reward, whereas keeping users happy yields better financial incentives.

If Google can prove that its new AdID system is more useful for advertisers and more private for users than cookies, then Google could be on to a winner.

Apple has its own cookie alternative called the “identifier for advertisers” or IDFA. AdID could be the thing that helps Google compete not just with Apple but with all its rivals.