Facebook losing its advertising revenue as Apple disables tracking

Apple recently introduced an update that provides users to allow or disallow installed apps from tracking them in light of recent issues on transparency. This pre-active measure by Apple was launched in iOS 14 as the App Tracking Transparency update which brought the option to Apple users to discard any tracking for all apps. The application that was most affected by this was the social media giant, Facebook. Loosing on around 40% of its revenue due to the lack of data generated from this update, Facebook is on the verge of losing almost all of its iOS data as 75% of Apple users have straight-up rejects any app from tracking their movement while 22% of the users were only allowing certain apps to follow their activity.

Bloomberg commented on this crisis at Facebook by mentioning that only 25% of people were granting permission and that too at select times, however, the update has chopped down the biggest data transmission line for advertisers on iOS and this would bring problems for Facebook as advertisers might choose to leave the platform and its ad campaigns if updates are not brought forward to compensate for the loss of data. In conclusion, Facebook would have to pull out a Harry Houdini miracle to convert this loss from every way into a favorable outcome.

The question that this update brings to light is often astounding as Facebook’s major source of revenue is through brand deals and the advertisement campaigns that it runs and this update is not only cutting down the existing revenue but preventing future deals as the lack of targeted advertisement would be not only costly but have none to little return on advertisement leaving not only Facebook ad campaign useless but ruin the Facebook Marketplace as obsolete as well under this.

It is speculated that if in the near future, Android decides to take a bite out of the slice of Apple’s textbook, Facebook would no longer be open for all free software but would probably charge its users for further usage. This might be the rage of Facebook but this seems to be an option Facebook is considering in the longer run. Apart from that, the minds at the tech giant are clashing since the update was released to provide updates and developments that would bring stability to its ad revenue back as well return the lost customers that it had. The options of Facebook are not many but the bright minds might spring something new and unique and we’ll be waiting for it eagerly to report it.


Photo: Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

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