Mobile Growth Lab
We launched the Mobile Growth Lab this week – over 60 marketers, executives, product managers and developers signed up to break the shackles of ATT’s performance and measurement losses. Our first session kicked off on Tuesday – and while the premium and executive editions are closed for registrations, you can get access to the recorded versions of these sessions through our self-serve plan.

Check it out here: https://mobilegrowthlab.com/

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KEY HIGHLIGHTS

✨ Not everything presented at WWDC will release this year

🪐 Web-to-app attribution was intentionally placed in the presentation

💫 Hierarchical IDs and multiple conversion values – likely to be the  first to come out

🍿 SKAdNetwork is typically uncorrelated with iOS releases

🥁 Fingerprinting won’t be clamped down this year

KEY QUOTES

The future of fingerprinting

You can also make a broader assumption from this that fingerprinting is not going to be clamped down on this year. My reason for this is that web-to-app is the most important missing piece of the SKAdNetwork puzzle. Until it is rolled out, Apple can definitely claim to have created a comprehensive toolkit for advertisers. 

SKAdNetwork 4.0 may not be connected to iOS 16

Many people associate the SKAdNetwork 4.0 release with iOS 16. However, Apple has never specified the two are connected, only that SKAdNetwork 4 would be released this year. It could coincide with iOS 16.1 or 16.3, just like the ATT was rolled out on iOS 14.5. And once it is released, it won’t cover all the iOS base. Just like how SKAdNetwork 3.0 was only available for iOS 14.6 users or Apple prospects for developers available only for iOS 15 users.

FULL TRANSCRIPT BELOW

I’ve been following SKAdNetwork since its first version in 2018 and during my eight years in the industry, I have not seen a more polarizing topic. 

There have already been a huge number of articles analyzing SKAdNetwork 4.0. So I’d like to focus on something different – when advertisers are actually going to get their hands on SKAdNetwork 4.0 for features. Spoiler alert, not everything that was presented at WWDC is going to be available this year. 

I was recently rewatching the SKAdNetwork presentation from WWDC 22 and I spotted something that I had not noticed before. Even though web to app attribution was introduced as part of SKAdNetwork 4.0, it wasn’t shown on a key slide outlining what would be introduced later this year. I don’t think this was a mistake, but a deliberate omission and believe this shows Apple will release announced SKAdNetwork 4.0 features in batches. Web to app is probably not planned for this year’s batch. 

This contrasts with previous SKAdNetwork releases, where everything was pushed live in one final swoop and has important implications for advertisements. Importantly, at the start of the presentation, an Apple rep states that hierarchical IDs and multiple conversion values are the first new features that are coming to SKAdNetwork 4.0. That means that as announced, web to app attribution and full testing suite is not coming in 2018. 

You can also make a broader assumption from this that fingerprinting is not going to be clamped down on this year. My reason for this is that web to app is the most important missing piece of the SKAdNetwork puzzle. Until it is rolled out, Apple can definitely claim to have created a comprehensive toolkit for advertisers. 

Phased release schedule also has implications for testing. Testing features released in 2022 will only support multiple conversion values, new sources and identifiers and fine the coarse conversion values. That means the following feature won’t be available this year: validating ad impression implementation based on SKAdNetwork prospects. 

Many people associate the SKAdNetwork 4.0 release with iOS 16. However, Apple has never specified the two are connected, only that SKAdNetwork 4 would be released this year. It could coincide with iOS 16.1 or 16.3, just like the ATT was rolled out on iOS 14.5. And once it is released, it won’t cover all the iOS base. Just like how SKAdNetwork 3.0 was only available for iOS 14.6 users or Apple prospects for developers available only for iOS 15 users. I’ve always found something similar with SKAdNetwork 4.0, their features will only be available for iOS 16 users. 

The implication here is that advertisers will need to wait for iOS 16 adoption to reach a significant number of users to feel the full effect of the new features, essentially delaying adoption for them. So to summarize, SKAdNetwork 4.0 will make advertisers’ lives a bit easier. But Apple has broken its usual mold by making this a gradual process which won’t reach full power in 2022. So, realistically, we’re going to have to wait until 2023 to enjoy the full suite of SKAdNetwork 4.0. 

Feel free to find me on LinkedIn and ask any SKAdNetwork or growth-related questions. 

Thanks for having me here. 

A REQUEST BEFORE YOU GO

I have a very important favor to ask, which as those of you who know me know I don’t do often. If you get any pleasure or inspiration from this episode, could you PLEASE leave a review on your favorite podcasting platform – be it iTunes, Overcast, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast fix. This podcast is very much a labor of love – and each episode takes many many hours to put together. When you write a review, it will not only be a great deal of encouragement to us, but it will also support getting the word out about the Mobile User Acquisition Show.

Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are welcome, whether on podcasting platforms – or by email to shamanth at rocketshiphq.com. We read all reviews & I want to make this podcast better.

Thank you – and I look forward to seeing you with the next episode!