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- Apple has struck fear into the heart of the online ad industry after introducing new warnings to users that they are being tracked on apps and sites.
- Some 16 advertising groups, some backed by online ad giants Facebook and Google, complained that Apple was forcing apps to ask users for permission to track them twice.
- Facebook and Google make the bulk of their revenue from online ads, and are among thousands of companies who track users’ internet habits.
- Apple said it wanted to give users more transparency about how their information is used.
A group of European digital advertising associations on Friday criticized Apple’s plans to require apps to seek additional permission from users before tracking them across other apps and websites.
Apple last week disclosed features in its forthcoming operating system for iPhones and iPads that will require apps to show a pop-up screen before they enable a form of tracking commonly needed to show personalized ads.
Sixteen marketing associations, some of which are backed by Facebook and Alphabet-owned Google, faulted Apple for not adhering to an ad-industry system for seeking user consent under European privacy rules. Apps will now need to ask for permission twice, increasing the risk users will refuse, the associations argued.
Facebook and Google are the largest among thousands of companies that track online consumers to pick up on their habits and interests and serve them relevant ads.
Apple said the new feature was aimed at giving users greater transparency over how their information is being used. In training sessions at a developer conference last week, Apple showed that developers can present any number of additional screens beforehand to explain why permission is needed before triggering its pop-up.
The pop-up says an app “would like permission to track you across apps and websites owned by other companies” and gives the app developer several lines below the main text to explain why the permission is sought. It is not required until an app seeks access to a numeric identifier that can be used for tracking, and apps only need to secure permission once.
The group of European marketing firms said…
