Facebook has certified DoubleClick for ad impression tracking, ending an unofficial policy against Google technologies on its platform.
Sources tell AdExchanger Facebook’s decision went into effect in the last two weeks. It’s undoubtedly good news for DoubleClick and its customers, who will now be able to track and attribute Facebook campaign impressions alongside their other online ad placements.
While the move suggests a thawing of Facebook’s historically chilly stance toward Google, it’s important to point out it comes amid a general liberalization of Facebook’s third party ad tracking program. Late last month Facebook confirmed Microsoft’s Atlas ad server as a preferred tracking provider. And two weeks ago it granted tracking certification to Adometry, a pure play attribution vendor. So this may be less about Google than it is about honoring advertiser requests for third party measurement.
At least one other Facebook embargo against Google still stands. DoubleClick Bid Manager – the DSP previously known as Invite Media – is conspicuously excluded from the list of DSPs permitted to access RTB inventory on the Facebook Exchange. Facebook Exchange still represents a very small fraction of Facebook’s marketplace ad inventory, so that’s something that could change in the future as well.
Another question concerns Facebook’s response to Google buying Wildfire Interactive, a deal announced yesterday. Wildfire enjoys preferred vendor status in its Insights, Apps, and Pages areas. Will Facebook continue to grant it that designation, and how will it respond if Google seeks approval as an Ads API provider, or buys a company that already has it? Time will tell.
Even with the wider acceptance of view through tracking technologies, there remain significant restrictions on Facebook impression tracking. Advertisers can still only drop tracking cookies when premium ads are served, and not for marketplace inventory. Also, impression tracking doesn’t apply to owned and earned impressions generated through brand Pages.
Facebook declined comment.
