It’s been a few months since Google announced that they would not be phasing out third-party cookie use in their market-dominating Chrome browser. If you’re keeping score, this was after several years of announcing the phaseout was coming — if delayed — and actually beginning the phaseout for a small percentage of users.
By the time Google announced the first time that they would be phasing out third-party cookie use, they were already years behind several other popular web browsers.
Months (years?) on, the changes that continue in regulation, technology, consumer expectation, and marketing strategy show that demand drives innovation, and innovation doesn’t wait — even for a tech giant.
Google’s decision to pause the full phase-out of third-party cookie use — enabling users to disable them manually in Chrome —- was a pragmatic step, and at the time not that surprising.
Faced with regulatory uncertainty, technical complexity, and uneven industry readiness, a softer transition was always a likely outcome. When your user base is in the billions, all decisions are tough ones.
Although, for a company with Google’s reach and influence, a bold move to embrace the latest privacy-first principles could have had seismic implications and been something of a great leap forward for privacy standards around the world.
Now, in 2025, third-party cookies may technically remain in use to some degree, but the shift in consumer attitudes and marketers’ realization of their is clear.
As data privacy becomes the standard and opt-out mechanisms become more visible — and legally required —, more users are taking action to limit tracking. Even a couple of years ago nearly three-quarters of Europeans were managing access to their personal data.
This has and will continue to reduce the effectiveness of third-party data and increase reliance on alternatives. (For smart companies, the embrace of alternatives like zero- and first-party data.)
Businesses have received multiple strong signals to adapt and offer an array of solutions that are built for responding to differing data preferences at every step. The evolving privacy landscape demands proactive steps to maintain performance alongside trust. At this point it’s the only viable path to sustainable growth.
A consent management platform (CMP) continues to be a critical piece of that privacy puzzle. Not just for regulatory compliance — which is ever-evolving, sometimes overlapping, and pretty much demands automated support —, but for managing consent consistently and in user-friendly ways across web, app, and server-side environments.
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Without a robust CMP that captures, interprets, and enforces user choices across digital platforms, businesses risk compliance gaps, degraded user experiences, and the loss of valuable signals. A modern CMP ensures that consent isn’t just collected, it’s respected and operationalized across the entire stack.
It shows demonstrable care to website visitors, app users, ecommerce customers, and others, which drives long-term engagement.
The aforementioned, zero- and first-party data strategies are becoming essential. These privacy-forward approaches create more durable connections with users and reduce reliance on third-party tracking.
And the data quality improvements are undeniable — unsurprising when they come directly from customer actions and expressed preferences. When paired with server-side tracking, the improved data quality is bolstered by with, stronger consent enforcement, and long-term strategic resilience.
Consumers are no longer passive when it comes to their data. With rising awareness and vocalness, they want clarity, control, and meaningful choice. Businesses that deliver on those demands — through trusted consent flows and responsible data use — will be the ones that succeed. Flip-flopping on privacy-driven change will only see stragglers get left behind.
The future is privacy-led, and it will not stop. Now is the time to integrate privacy and make it work for you, rather than pretending that widespread (and exciting) digital evolution isn’t already underway.