Third-party cookies have been used for the last few decades for web tracking, principally for web tracking as part of online advertising. It's the classic example: you look at a hotel website, and later that week, you start seeing ads for that hotel across the websites you visit and the social media platforms you browse.

Privacy Concerns: The digital world has been buzzing about privacy for years. Users got savvy and started demanding more control over their data. Our industry, in particular, discovered (and had to accept) that after visiting a hotel website, potential guests didn't want a barrage of retargeting ads pressuring them to book a stay. Fair enough.

Regulatory Changes: Enter the regulators, armed with legislation like GDPR in Europe and CCPA in California, amping up the volume on the megaphone for privacy concerns. Ready or not, these laws pushed us into a new future where respecting user privacy was paramount.

Tech Companies Followed Suit: The big tech players, like Apple and Google, decided to get ahead of the privacy party. Both giants implemented changes that essentially put third-party cookies on the back burner, restricting (without altogether eliminating) their ability to track users across the web. In the past few years, all industries have seen less effective and far more costly advertising as a result.

Tried and tested tactics like online advertising will have reduced targeting and reporting capabilities, making guest acquisition and ROI measurement more challenging. Our eBook shares the opportunities this presents, and strategies for action to meet the moment.