- Apple Inc AAPL reiterated its stance of giving users privacy controls and options on limiting apps tracking their digital footprints, the Wall Street Journal reports.
- The iPhone maker will roll out the new privacy features in early spring, with a beta version out sooner for testing.
- The new software update to its mobile OS would allow user ad tracking only if consumers opt-in. This means that companies like Facebook, Inc FB, Alphabet Inc’s GOOG GOOGL, Google, and others would not be able to collect a person’s advertising identifier without permission.
- Tim Cook is due to speak at the Computers, Privacy, and Data Protection conference on Thursday on data privacy.
- Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg in his fourth-quarter earnings conference call, said that Apple is one of its biggest competitors. “iMessage is a key linchpin of their ecosystem,” remarked Zuckerberg. “It comes pre-installed on every iPhone and they preference it with private APIs and permissions, which is why iMessage is the most used messaging service in the U.S.”
- Apple’s move has the app industry worried that opt-in requirements might lead many users to reject the request, resulting in the collapse of ad prices.
- Price Action: In the pre-market session on the last check Thursday, AAPL shares are down 2.24% at $138.88, and FB shares are down 0.57% at $270.60.
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