Apple just forced Facebook to decimate their Mobile App Ads API Ecosystem on iOS 14
What advertisers need to prepare for by September 14th, 2020
Facebook dropped a bombshell announcement this morning that will change the mobile app advertising landscape forever.
They are abandoning Apple’s IDFA and shifting to in-house infrastructure for attribution and app install ad buying on iOS.
This appears to be a forced response from Facebook based on Apple privacy requirements. Facebook states in their announcement that this isn’t what they wanted to do, but they have to take action based on the recent WWDC announcements around mandatory privacy upgrades for all apps on iOS 14.
Facebook’s Official Statement: “We will not collect ID for Advertisers (IDFA) on our own apps on iOS 14 devices, and we will not adopt Apple’s prompt.”
WHAT ADVERTISERS NEED TO PREPARE FOR BY 9/14/2020
Facebook will require advertisers to create separate ad accounts for iOS 14 mobile app install ads. The new accounts will have severe functionality limitations.
Recommended Action items:
Prepare to create a new Facebook ad account specifically for your iOS app install campaigns. Facebook is requiring this and will release a new account creation flow for iOS 14 soon.
If you are running iOS app install campaigns for the same app in multiple ad accounts, prepare to consolidate. Facebook will only allow one ad account per iOS app.
Prepare to structure your iOS 14 app install ad account with only up to nine campaigns and one ad set per campaign. This will be another Facebook requirement.
Facebook will require the latest version of their Facebook SDK if advertisers want to continue leveraging App Event Optimization. (R.I.P. Facebook Mobile Attribution Ecosystem)
Recommended Action Items:
Watch out for the latest version of the Facebook SDK (it’s not released yet) and upgrade to enable iOS 14 SKAdNetwork compatibility.
If you are using a Third Party Mobile Measurement Partner and not the Facebook SDK, consider implementing the Facebook SDK.
If you don’t upgrade the FB SDK, prepare to shift your iOS campaigns to the App Install Objective versus App Event Optimization until Facebook figures out how to support Third Party tracking for AEO.
Facebook will require advertisers to buy iOS 14 App Install Ads via Ads Manager. (R.I.P. Facebook App Ads API Ecosystem)
Recommended Action Items:
If you are using a Facebook Marketing Partner to buy iOS mobile app installs or are using the Marketing API directly, prepare to switch onto Facebook Ads Manager after iOS 14.
iOS 14 App Install Ads will only be available via Ads Manager.
Facebook is likely killing the Facebook Audience Network. (R.I.P. Facebook Mobile App Publisher Ecosystem)
Recommended Action Items:
Read Facebook’s official statement: “despite our best efforts, may render Audience Network so ineffective on iOS 14 that it may not make sense to offer it on iOS 14 in the future.”
Prepare to eliminate Facebook Audience Network targeting on iOS 14 or run the risk of having the traffic source deprecated from your strategy shortly thereafter.
This news is incredible fresh but we wanted to share out basic guidance as soon as we possibly could. These are the bare minimum requirements to continue running app install ads on iOS 14 after September.
We’ll share more advanced guidance soon. Stay tuned!
I think you got some of the facts wrong. Let me explain:
"iOS 14 App Install Ads will only be available via Ads Manager" - not accurate.
"R.I.P. Facebook App Ads API Ecosystem" absolutely not true.
From the beginning of September to the end of September only, the API will enable read only. However - and this is the bigger part - you cannot target iOS 14 if you didn't implement the new Facebook SDK (or an SDK that speaks the SKAdnetwork language), which will be a much more difficult task than just upgrading the SDK like in the past. This is a business challenge - as advertisers need to make a decision what they report and when, because they only have 1 postback.
So let's look at the order of things:
1. continue targeting iOSx and above like you have been doing in the past - iOS10 and above, iOS11 and above, etc. Facebook will exclude iOS14.
2. implement the new SDK (will take some time for most organizations)
3. create the new ad account
4. create the campaigns. You are currently limited by FB to maximum 9 campaigns with 1 adset each. the rest of the budget is in the older ad accounts.
By the end of september FMPs will have full access to the API. So, this isn't even an issue.
Thanks for your share, I don't understand why Facebook only allow up to nine campaigns , because google ads said up to 100 campaign can be created?