Google Topics as a way out of the cookie dilemma?

TL;DR

The paper examines legal and technical developments in online advertising, focusing on Google's new Topics system as a privacy-friendly alternative to cookies following recent European court decisions.

Contribution

It introduces Google's Topics initiative as a novel approach to personalized advertising that complies with stricter privacy regulations and legal standards.

Findings

Google Topics categorizes users into interest groups for targeted ads.

Implementation of Google Topics began in July 2023.

The approach aims to replace cookies while respecting privacy laws.

Abstract

The paper discusses the legal requirements and implications of the processing of information and personal data for advertising purposes, particularly in the light of the "Planet49" decision of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) and the "Cookie Consent II" decision by the German Federal Court (Bundesgerichtshof, BGH). It emphasises that obtaining explicit consent of individuals is necessary for setting cookies. The introduction of the German Telecommunication Telemedia Data Protection Act (Telekommunikation-Telemedien-Datenschutzgesetz, TTDSG) has replaced the relevant section of the German Telemedia Act (Telemediengesetz, TMG) and transpose the concept of informed consent for storing and accessing information on terminal equipment, aligning with Article 5(3) ePrivacy Directive. To meet these requirements, companies exploring alternatives to obtaining consent are developing technical mechanisms that rely on a legal basis. Google tested initially "Federated Learning of Cohorts" (FLoC) as part of their "Privacy Sandbox" strategy. This technology was significantly criticized, Google introduced a new project called "Google Topics", which aims to personalize advertising by categorizing users into interest groups, called topics. Implementation of this technology began in July 2023.