Google updates Consent Mode with Two New Parameters

Google last month an updated its Consent Mode, a tool that helps website owners comply with data privacy regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

The update includes two new parameters, which gives website owners more flexibility in how they manage user consent.

The two new parameters are:

• "ad_user_data": This parameter determines whether personal data is sent to a Google service for the purposes of personalization and advertising. If this parameter is set to "1", then personal data will be sent to Google. If this parameter is set to "0", then personal data will not be sent to Google.
• "ad_personalization": This parameter determines whether personal data can be used for the purposes of personalization and advertising. If this parameter is set to "1", then personal data can be used for personalization and advertising. If this parameter is set to "0", then personal data cannot be used for personalization and advertising.

The new parameters are designed to give website owners more control over how user data is used. For example, a website owner could set the "ad_user_data" parameter to "1" and the "ad_personalization" parameter to "0" to allow Google to collect user data for the purposes of personalization, but not for the purposes of advertising.

The update to Consent Mode is called Consent Mode v2. Website owners who are already using Consent Mode need to upgrade to Consent Mode v2 to take advantage of the new features.

Google has announced that advertisers and publishers who do not update to Consent Mode v2 by March 2024 will be unable to display ads on websites that use Consent Mode. This means that advertisers will lose the ability to target ads to specific users and publishers will lose revenue from ad impressions.

If advertisers and publishers do not update to Consent Mode v2, they will not be able to comply with these regulations and will be at risk of being fined. They will also miss out on the benefits of targeting ads to specific users, such as improved campaign performance and higher click-through rates.

Here are the potential consequences that advertisers and publishers can expect if they do not update to Consent Mode v2:

• Loss of revenue: Advertisers will lose the ability to target ads to specific users, which will result in a decrease in ad impressions and revenue.
• Increased costs: Advertisers may have to pay more for ads that are not targeted to specific users.
• Reduced campaign performance: Ads that are not targeted to specific users will be less likely to be clicked on, which will lead to a decrease in campaign performance.
• Potential fines: Advertisers and publishers who do not comply with data privacy regulations may be fined.