Facebook Audience Network to Go Bidding-Only for iOS in Q2 2021

Facebook responded to impending changes in Apple’s iOS 14 operating system by saying Friday that its Facebook Audience Network mobile application monetization platform will exclusively use bidding to fill ads in iOS apps beginning in the second quarter of 2021.

iPhone identifiers, or iDFAs, are at the center of the conflict between the two tech giants, as Apple’s updates will prevent Facebook from collecting them.

The social network said in August, when details on iOS 14 began emerging, that if Audience Network was unable to collect IDFAs, its ability to serve personalized, in-app ads to iPhone users would be severely constrained, preventing it from charging higher CPMs.

Publishers and developers must migrate their iOS apps to bidding by March 31, 2021, in order to continue monetizing via Audience Network, and they should contact their Audience Network representatives to do so.