Facebook did not hesitate to express its concerns about the changes that will occur in iOS 14. Last summer, Apple announced the changes, which include the requirement that apps include a nutritional privacy label to show users what data is collected and how they are used. as well as what Apple calls App Tracking Transparency (ATT), which requires applications to request permission before tracking users.
Apple delayed the implementation of the latter to give advertisers and developers time to adjust to the change. Now, however, it should arrive with the next iOS update.
In the meantime, Facebook has made its fight public. The company ran two ads in three of the nation’s most widely circulated newspapers, accusing Apple of attacking small businesses and the open internet. Mark Zuckerberg also attacked Apple’s motivations during the company’s quarterly earnings report last month, and there are reports that he is considering opening an antitrust lawsuit against the iPhone maker.
The company has now launched a new campaign, including an ad entitled “Good ideas deserve to be found”. The new ad is a little difficult to follow, but its goal is to show the value of personalized ads for small businesses. Facebook wants to make it very clear that personalized ads provide a better Facebook and Instagram experience, owned by you as well.
In a blog post, Facebook explains why:
Everyone’s News Feed is unique, which means you’re more likely to see the content you’d like to watch, the groups you’d like to join, the creators you’d like to follow, and the products and services you’d like to buy. This discovery is entirely driven by personalization and is the not-so-secret sauce that helps people discover products and services that meet their needs. It is also the mechanism that small businesses use to reach their most likely customers at an affordable price. We believe this is good for small businesses and people who love their products. And we want more people to know why.
There is much to reveal in this statement, but it is important to note what Facebook does not say. Facebook never talks about tracking, because it doesn’t want you to think about tracking. He doesn’t want you to think about the fact that the company’s goal is to get you to allow it to track everything you do online so that it can show these personalized ads.
The point is that this is not at risk. Apple isn’t ending personalized ads – or even tracking, for that matter. It only requires applications to ask permission first.
This leads to an interesting question. Who is the ad for? Does Facebook expect Apple to change its mind? This does not seem likely. Tim Cook has already made the company’s position clear.
The company won’t stop Facebook from tracking it, but it will have to ask for your permission first.
Why, then, is Facebook so concerned? Because he knows what everyone already knows – that when they have a choice, most people will choose not to allow Facebook to track them.
If this is bad for Facebook’s business, it’s not Apple’s fault. It just means that Facebook’s business model is based on something that most people would prefer not to be done.
Except, small businesses can still advertise to their customers. They can still use all the information Facebook knows about its users – such as gender, age, location and interests – to display ads. If you are a small business, none of that changes. The only person who really has to lose seems to be Facebook.