Google cookie deprecation delay ‘hardly a surprise,’ says Macquarie

Macquarie notes that Google (GOOGL) has announced that it is delaying its deprecation of the 3rd party Chrome cookie due to pressure from the U.K.’s CMA and “divergent feedback from the industry, regulators and developers.” The news is hardly a surprise, the firm says, noting that it still expects cookie elimination to happen. While the delay in one way pushes off the inevitable, it does mean any imminent negative market impacts such as temporary shocks to the system are now pushed out, Macquarie argues. The firm notes that The Trade Desk (TTD) has expressed some concerns over the effect this deprecation would cause, so perhaps the delay provides a temporary sentiment boost, while Criteo (CRTO) – which was perhaps the most front-foot on getting ready for a cookie-less future, “would like to get this over with.” LiveRamp (RAMP) has seen good growth in its subscription business recently, perhaps in anticipation of cookies disappearing, as it has established its identity solutions as an industry standard alternative to cookies, says the firm.