Facebook Says Impact of iOS 14.5's App Tracking Transparency Will Be 'Manageable'

Facebook today announced its earnings for the first calendar quarter of 2021, and during the call discussing the results, Facebook executives confirmed that Apple's App Tracking Transparency will have a "manageable" impact on Facebook's business starting in the second quarter.

Apple vs Facebook feature
As highlighted by ZDNet, Facebook CFO Dave Wehner said that Facebook is expecting "increased ad targeting headwinds in 2021 from regulatory and platform changes, notably the recently launched iOS 14.5 update." iOS 14.5 is the update that includes App Tracking Transparency, and it requires app developers to ask for express permission before accessing the IDFA for tracking users across apps and websites.

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg went on to explain that Facebook is doing a "huge amount of work" to prepare for the changes to personalized advertising, including rebuilding elements of its advertising platform and making the case that "personalized advertising is good for people and businesses."

We're doing a huge amount of work to prepare. We're working with our customers to implement Apple's API and our own aggregated events measurement API to mitigate the impact of the iOS 14 changes. We're rebuilding meaningful elements of our ad tech so that our system continues to perform when we have access to less data in the future.

And we're part of long-term collaborations with industry bodies like the W3C on initiatives like privacy enhancing technologies that provide personalized experiences while limiting access to people's information. It's also on us to keep making the case that personalized advertising is good for people and businesses, and to better explain how it works so that businesses don't have to understand the alphabet soup of acronyms they'll need to comply with. But they do need to have confidence that they can still use our tools to reach the people who want to buy what they're selling in a privacy-safe way. We're confident they can and that they can continue to get great results as digital advertising evolves.

Wehner said that he believes the impact to Facebook's "own business" will be manageable, and that the company's goal is to maintain and improve ad performance with less data. He also took the opportunity to criticize Apple's platform, and said that Facebook is also facing problems from Apple's private APIs that advantage Apple's own products and services.

Overall, the impact of these specific iOS 14 changes are one element of some of the challenges with Apple, but we think the impact of the Apple approach is really much bigger than this particular update. Apple has a number of private APIs on hardware and software that advantage their own products and services in ways that are challenging. We face that issue in places like our messaging products, and even with the hardware products we're launching. So we generally don't think this closed approach is the best one for the industry from an innovation perspective.

Prior to the enforcement of App Tracking Transparency, Facebook launched a campaign attempting to position Apple as an enemy of small businesses, going as far to take out full page newspaper ads decrying the new feature. "Apple's latest update threatens the personalized ads that millions of small businesses rely on to find and reach customers," reads Facebook's site encouraging small businesses to "add their voice" and speak out against ATT.

There had been questions about Facebook's narrative and how much of an impact the changes would actually have on small businesses, and even Facebook employees felt that Facebook was just using a sympathetic message to "justify doing a bad thing."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in March began downplaying the potential impact of App Tracking Transparency and said that the changes could ultimately benefit Facebook if Apple's new policies encourage businesses to advertise and sell exclusively through Facebook platforms.

Facebook has already begun rolling out its App Tracking Transparency prompt to Facebook users, but the rollout will take a few weeks, so not everyone will see the prompt at the current time.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro to Reverse iPhone X Design Decision

Monday July 7, 2025 9:46 am PDT by
Since the iPhone X in 2017, all of Apple's highest-end iPhone models have featured either stainless steel or titanium frames, but it has now been rumored that this design decision will be coming to an end with the iPhone 17 Pro models later this year. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo today, the account Instant Digital said that the iPhone 17 Pro models will have an aluminum...
iOS 26 Feature

Everything New in iOS 26 Beta 3

Monday July 7, 2025 1:20 pm PDT by
Apple is continuing to refine and update iOS 26, and beta three features smaller changes than we saw in beta 2, plus further tweaks to the Liquid Glass design. Apple is gearing up for the next phase of beta testing, and the company has promised that a public beta is set to come out in July. Transparency In some apps like Apple Music, Podcasts, and the App Store, Apple has toned down the...
imac video apple feature

Apple Launching These 15+ Products Later This Year

Sunday July 6, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
The calendar has turned to July, meaning that 2025 is now more than half over. And while the summer months are often quiet for Apple, the company still has more than a dozen products coming later this year, according to rumors. Below, we have outlined at least 15 new Apple products that are expected to launch later this year, along with key rumored features for each. iPhone 17 Series iPho...
iphone 16 pro models 1

Here's How the iPhone 17 Pro Max Will Compare to the iPhone 17 Pro

Saturday July 5, 2025 1:00 pm PDT by
Apple should unveil the iPhone 17 series in September, and there might be one bigger difference between the Pro and Pro Max models this year. As always, the Pro Max model will be larger than the Pro model:iPhone 17 Pro: 6.3-inch display iPhone 17 Pro Max: 6.9-inch displayGiven the Pro Max is physically larger than the Pro, it has more internal space, allowing for a larger battery and...
iPhone Car Key Kia

Here's Which Vehicles Offer iPhone Car Keys

Sunday July 6, 2025 3:03 pm PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. Apple has a web page with a list of vehicle models that ...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says iPhone Driver's Licenses Will Expand to These 8 U.S. States

Tuesday July 8, 2025 11:26 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico,...
iphone 17 pro render majin bu

New iPhone 17 Pro Renders Highlight Apple Logo and MagSafe Design Changes

Sunday July 6, 2025 8:43 pm PDT by
New renders today provide the best look yet relocated Apple logo and redesigned MagSafe magnet array of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Image via Majin Bu. Several of the design changes coming to the iPhone 17 Pro model have been rumored for some time, such as the elongated camera bump that spans the full width of the device, with the LiDAR Scanner and flash moving to the right side. ...
apple account card feature

Apple Account Card Expanding to More Countries

Tuesday July 8, 2025 7:34 pm PDT by
Apple is expanding the ability to add an Apple Account Card to the Wallet app to more countries, according to backend Apple Pay changes. With iOS 15.5, Apple updated the Wallet app to allow users to add an Apple Account Card, which displays the Apple credit balance associated with an Apple ID. If you receive an Apple gift card, for example, it is added to an Apple Account that is also...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Friday July 4, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are just over two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:Apple logo repositioned: Apple's logo may have a lower position on the back of the iPhone 17 Pro models, compared to previous...

Top Rated Comments

BWhaler Avatar
55 months ago
Sheryl Sandberg & Zuck. The tobacco executives of the digital age.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
farewelwilliams Avatar
55 months ago
so all that talk before was pure BS?

shocking...
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kenni417 Avatar
55 months ago
yes i’m sure it will, zucc
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheWatchfulOne Avatar
55 months ago
App tracking transparency will be manageable for FaceBook? Sounds like Apple needs to try harder.?
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Corsig Avatar
55 months ago
Then why all the full page newspaper ads?? Something tells me Zuck is full of it
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JungeQuex Avatar
55 months ago

I'm so glad that other than Instagram (that's just useful for my job), Facebook hasn't been a part of my life since 2014
Pretty much. I left Facebook around the same time. However, I made the huge mistake of going back around 2018, and jumped on the social media bandwagon in order to promote some pages.

Anyway, the entire place is a pretty nasty hive of politics and bad will towards one another. Years ago, Facebook was a great way to stay in touch with your friends. Now? It’s a great way to help drive former friends apart.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)