Nielsen launches cookie-less ID resolution system

Nielsen said it would work with The Trade Desk and others in the industry on an open and interoperable ID built on hashed and encrypted email addresses to reconcile different first-party identifications and replace third-party cookies.

The new system will comprise direct integrations with publishers and advertisers, panels to combine data from various sources and machine learning models.

The company said that it would introduce the new ID resolution system to prepare for a more “fragmented” future and to prevent data erosion.

The ID resolution system would also ensure Nielsen could continue people-based measurement across all platforms and publishers, and ‘deduplicate’ devices, content and advertising exposure despite existing identifiers becoming unreliable.

Earlier this year, Google announced that it anticipated removing third-party cookies from its ‘Chrome’ browser by 2022, following similar policy announcements by rivals Firefox and Safari.

The ID resolution system will be released in the US in the first quarter of 2021. The release of the new system follows Nielsen’s production of a cookie-less advertising tool with IBM earlier this year.

Mainak Mazumdar, chief data officer at Nielsen, said: “By underpinning our audience and outcomes measurement products with our unique ID resolution methodology, we are futureproofing our business and products from ongoing technology and regulatory changes.”