Google’s commitment to transparency and control means we regularly look at ways to improve the consent experience. When we do this, we’re thinking about evolving user expectations and regulatory indicators that we think will ultimately guide the broader online advertising landscape. That’s why we’re introducing a new requirement to help our partners adapt to these changes, and we anticipate others in the industry will follow with similar adjustments.

In 2020, we integrated our ads systems with IAB Europe’s Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF). That framework is supported across the advertising ecosystem today, including by numerous Consent Management Platforms (CMPs), which support many of Google’s publisher partners.

New IAB TCF requirement

Later this year, we will require all partners using our publisher products — Google AdSense, Ad Manager, or AdMob — to use a Google certified CMP that integrates with the TCF when serving ads to users in the European Economic Area or the UK. In the coming weeks, we will make available a list of Google certified CMPs that have integrated with the IAB Europe TCF and meet the TCF’s specifications, and we’ll require that our partners use a CMP from that list.

The decision to require our publishers to adopt the IAB TCF follows on from IAB Europe’s announcement that TCF V2.2 has been finalized, which further supports consistency in the online advertising consent experience. This decision is also a continuation of our 2020 commitment to support industry efforts aimed at managing user transparency and consent through a standardized framework.

Google has always been an advocate of industry standards as they support consistent experiences. By supporting the TCF, we aim to promote a unified and reliable approach for users and publishers across the broader ecosystem.

Certifying IAB TCF compliance

In connection with this new requirement, Google has begun the process of certifying CMPs that work with our publishing partners for TCF compliance. We want to ensure that each CMP can be used with our technology in ways that users expect. We’ll continue to support publishers who use the TCF, but also work with ad tech providers that are not registered with the TCF though our Additional Consent specification. Our CMP assessments will check that CMPs supporting our Additional Consent specification can do so correctly.

Successful review of a CMP against the criteria will make it available in our list of Google certified CMPs (Ad Manager, AdMob, AdSense). CMPs interested in learning more about our assessment process can read our Help Center (Ad Manager, AdMob, AdSense) to learn more and use this form to register for our review process.

Consistent consent experiences

We believe that by adopting IAB Europe’s standardized framework, our industry can establish a more unified and reliable approach to transparency and consent. In turn, these efforts will contribute to the ongoing evolution of user privacy and support a more privacy-conscious digital advertising ecosystem.