Facebook stops Partner Categories in third-party data advertising

Facebook will be temporarily stopping Partner Categories with immediate effect. Partner Categories is a form of advertising targeting that allowed third-party data collectors to share data with their clients. The data shared included purchasing activities on Facebook, likes, and so on. 

With the rise of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook has decided to momentarily curtail these third-party digital marketing and ad practices. There will be new limitations imposed on the type and volume of data that the third-party apps are giving through APIs.

The announcement was made on a company blog post. “We want to let advertisers know that we will be shutting down Partner Categories. This product enables third party data providers to offer their targeting directly on Facebook,” the statement said. Facebook also said that it hope this step will wind down over the next six months and will help improve the people’s privacy on Facebook.

Companies like Experian share revenue with Facebook as part of the Partner Categories. These companies derive data each time a marketer purchases ad space for digital marketing on Facebook. With the ongoing scandal, Facebook is considering this may lead to potential threat and crisis in the future. Hence, the social media giant has taken this step to ward off future privacy violations and unwanted disasters.