"Apple (AAPL) has postponed full enforcement of a feature of its upcoming iOS 14 software for iPhones that would require app developers to request users' permission to track them across apps for advertising purposes. This announcement comes in the wake of a public complaint from Facebook (FB) that the privacy policy could negatively impact the ad market in Apple's ecosystem."

'nuff said.
 

Facebook complains, Apple responds: iOS 14’s big privacy change gets postponed
The company says the change is still coming, but it hasn't said when.
Samuel Axon - 9/3/2020, 4:13 PM

Enlarge / From left to right: the iPhone 8, the iPhone XS, the iPhone XR, and the iPhone XS Max.

Apple has postponed full enforcement of a feature of its upcoming iOS 14 software for iPhones that would require app developers to request users' permission to track them across apps for advertising purposes. This announcement comes in the wake of a public complaint from Facebook that the privacy policy could negatively impact the ad market in Apple's ecosystem.

The feature, announced at Apple's annual developer conference in June, would require app developers to notify a user of an app's intent to track the user's IDFA (ID for Advertisers). IDFA is used to track the user's behavior across multiple apps and deliver targeted ads based on that behavior. The change would also require the user to opt in to that tracking.

Apple now says that, while developers will be able to implement this notification and request for permission, doing so will no longer be mandatory when iOS 14 launches sometime in the next couple of months. However, Apple was careful to clarify that it still intends to establish the requirement in the future, and that this is only a delay "to give developers time to make necessary changes."

Here's Apple's statement on the matter, which was published to its developer portal today:

"In addition, on iOS 14, iPadOS 14, and tvOS 14, apps will be required to receive user permission to track users across apps or websites owned by other companies, or to access the device's advertising identifier. We are committed to ensuring users can choose whether or not they allow an app to track them. To give developers time to make necessary changes, apps will be required to obtain permission to track users starting early next year. More information, including an update to the App Store Review Guidelines, will follow this fall."

The delay comes in the wake of a public ploy by Facebook to rally app developers and marketers against Apple over the planned change, as the change would fundamentally threaten the viability of Facebook's business model on iOS.

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