Amazon is quietly developing an internal ad tech team called ID++, which is part of its long-term strategy to win online advertising in the post-cookie era.
The team was recently promoted on an Amazon Advertising job posting site, but it has since been removed. Amazon said in the job posting: “The ID++ Program supports the next generation of innovative products and services that will fuel the future growth of Amazon’s ad solutions in an identity-restricted world.”
Amazon removed the job description after Ad Age reached out for comment. One marketing technology partner, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were aware of ID++, and that Amazon had been discussing the program with partners.
“This is an internal project team that is developing a range of modeled and contextual addressability solutions,” an Amazon spokesperson told Ad Age by email.
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Addressability allows for better targeting and measuring of specific audiences. Without cookies, internet ads will be harder to track. Amazon’s spokesperson did not provide further details about ID++ and referred Ad Age to a host of other ad tech upgrades Amazon delivered in recent months, pointing to its general roadmap in this area. For instance, in October, at its yearly ad tech showcase unBoxed, Amazon Publisher Cloud launched, which allows publishers to arrange programmatic ad deals through secure computing environments known as clean rooms. The publisher cloud signed partners, including Dotdash Meredith, Fandom and NBCUniversal.
The ad tech executive who had heard of ID++ said that Amazon was still explaining details of that program to partners, but it could further help advertisers and publishers once cookies go away. Starting in 2017, Apple shut down third-party cookies and other trackers on Safari and iPhones. Google is following suit with plans to extinguish third-party cookies on Chrome browsers by the end of the year. Advertisers and publishers are looking for new ways to effectively target and measure ads. Meanwhile, Amazon’s growing presence in digital advertising gives it a formidable position in the future of the ecosystem—on the buy and sell sides.