(Reuters) – Apple Inc said on Thursday that new privacy pop-up notices will appear on most iPhones as soon as “early spring”, a requirement that major digital advertising companies like Facebook Inc. have warned will harm their businesses.
The one-time notification requires an app developer to ask permission from a user before the app can track their activities ‘in other apps and sites’. Digital advertising experts believe that the warning will lead to many users refusing permission.
Apple announced the move last June, but said in September that it would slow the change to give digital advertisers more time to adapt.
Facebook said in December that it plans to show the pop-up notification because it does not want Apple iPhone users to lose access to its apps.
In a earnings call Wednesday, Facebook executives told investors that the change in the first quarter could hurt the company’s revenue, with CEO Mark Zuckerberg accusing Apple of ‘having every incentive to keep their dominance’ use platform position to interfere with how our programs and other programs work. ”
Apple announced on Wednesday that it has an active installed base of 1.65 billion devices, of which more than 1 billion are iPhones, with 620 million paying subscribers on their devices.
Google of Alphabet Inc. said Tuesday it will discontinue the practices, including the use of an Apple tracking identifier, which requires it to display the warning and avoid it.
Apple said alternative technologies are being offered for free that will help advertisers allocate paid clicks and taps without getting involved in what Apple believes.
Google said Tuesday it is working proactively with Apple to improve the alternative offering.
Apple said Wednesday that it will implement new tools, such as a way to allocate clicks on video ads.
Reporting by Stephen Nellis, Paresh Dave and Katie Paul in San Francisco; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall