INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
While Google's sandbox project is looking more directionless today, it is not completely ending the initiative
The team still plans to deploy promised improvements in Chrome's Incognito Mode, which has been re-architected to preserve user privacy
after numerous complaints
Incognito Mode blocks all third-party cookies, and later this year, it will gain IP protection, which masks a user's IP address to protect
against cross-site tracking.Chavez admits that this change will mean Google's Privacy Sandbox APIs will have a "different role to play" in
That's a kind way to put it
Google will continue developing these tools and will work with industry partners to find a path forward in the coming months
The company still hopes to see adoption of the Privacy Sandbox increase, but the industry is unlikely to give up on cookies
voluntarily.While Google focuses on how ad privacy has improved since it began working on the Privacy Sandbox, the changes in Google's legal
exposure are probably more relevant
Since launching the program, Google has lost three antitrust cases, two of which are relevant here: the search case currently in the remedy
phase and the newly decided ad tech case
As the government begins arguing that Chrome gives Google too much power, it would be a bad look to force a realignment of the advertising
alternative is better for privacy, at least on paper
However, universal adoption of the Privacy Sandbox could also give Google more power than it already has, and the supposed privacy
advantages may never have fully materialized as Google continues to seek higher revenue.
