The much-anticipated iOS 14 update will proceed as planned. However, the changes to the IDFA (identifier for advertisers) won’t go into effect until sometime in 2021. The move comes as Apple wants to provide developers and the mobile app marketing ecosystem more time to prepare for these fundamental changes to tracking users.
Apple said in a statement to TechCrunch, “We want to give developers the time they need to make the necessary changes, and as a result, the requirement to use this tracking permission will go into effect early next year.”
There is no definitive word yet on when early next year will be. Additional communication should be forthcoming with a timeline.
IDFA Is Key Component to Attribution
IDFA is a key to clarifying attribution for user acquisition (UA) campaigns. The changes relate mostly to user opt-ins. They’ll be required once the policy is fully implemented. Users will have to allow for the app in use to track data.
Industry Has Concerns, Apple Answers with Alternative
The initial announcement in June had many experts in the industry concerned. Apple has stated that the move is to strengthen user choice and privacy. They have defined a new alternative with the SKAdNetwork, which the company describes as an “ad network API helps advertisers measure the success of ad campaigns while maintaining user privacy.”
AdAction’s Plan
At this time, we do not expect the upcoming iOS 14 changes to impact the solutions we provide. Our plan is to continue our commitment to delivering high-quality traffic you know, appreciate, and trust.
We are working collaboratively with our MMP partners. Each MMP has a unique solution to the upcoming changes. Our focus for the last seven years has been to use a fingerprinting-based attribution model. As MMPs evolve their attribution models, we’ll be coordinating our efforts with them and sharing more information as the changes become official.
If you have specific questions about our offerings, please contact our support team.
