Have you been working hard behind the scenes preparing to navigate a world free of third-party cookies? As the CMO of performance marketing software company Phonexa, I sure was! Well ... not so fast!

Google just pumped the brakes on advertisers and affiliates bracing for a cookieless future.

Google announced on July 22 that it has reversed course on its long-discussed plans to discontinue third-party cookies in its Chrome browser after repeated delays stemming from a four-year stalemate with regulators and digital advertising companies.

In its new approach, Google Chrome will keep cookies, but users will be presented with a prompt to select whether to opt in or out. This move is intended to give users more control over their privacy while allowing advertisers to continue using cookies for tracking and targeting. This dual approach reflects Google's efforts to balance privacy concerns with the practical needs of advertisers and publishers who rely heavily on cookies for their operations.