After years of delays and deferrals of plans to abandon third-party cookies, Google has done an about turn and announced it will no longer be phasing out the third-party add-ons in Chrome.

According to a blog post by Anthony Chavez, VP of Privacy Sandbox, the decision was influenced by feedback from a range of stakeholders, including the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), publishers, web developers, standards groups, civil society, and participants in the advertising industry.

“Instead of deprecating third-party cookies, we would introduce a new experience in Chrome that lets people make an informed choice that applies across their web browsing, and they’d be able to adjust that choice at any time,” Chavez stated.

This move signifies a significant shift in Google’s approach to user privacy and data tracking yet comes after widespread criticism of Privacy Sandbox as an alternative.

The tech giant now plans to introduce a new user experience in Chrome that allows users to make what it said will be more “informed choices about their web browsing, which can be adjusted at any time”.

In the post, Chavez said feedback from various regulators and industry “has helped us craft solutions that aim to support a competitive and thriving marketplace that works for publishers and advertisers, and encourage the adoption of privacy-enhancing technologies”.

Google said it still plans to offer privacy-preserving alternatives and will continue work on the troubled Privacy Sandbox APIs to further improve privacy and utility.

“We also intend to offer additional privacy controls, so we plan to introduce IP Protection into Chrome’s Incognito mode,” Chavez said.

It was in April Google announced its most recent third-party cookie deprecation deadline delay for Chrome, which had been Q4 2024. The tech giant blamed regulatory oversight in the UK for the last delay.

The decision had sparked concern among industry leaders. At the time, Chris Brinkworth of Civic Data expressed worry the delays give unprepared marketing leaders a false sense of security.

“What’s concerning about these delays, are they continue to give unprepared marketing leaders a false sense of security, by overlooking the fact that their marketing, media, and measurement investments already have poor efficacy in over 30% of the ‘aggregated’ browser ecosystem, excluding Chrome,” Brinkworth told Mi3.

“If 90% of their addressable market resides within that post-deprecation ecosystem that already exists, the pushbacks by Chrome will further disadvantage those not yet educated about the rest of the market.”

Google plans to continue making the Privacy Sandbox APIs available and will invest in them to further improve privacy and utility. The company also plans to introduce IP protection into Chrome’s Incognito mode.