Web Giants Threaten End to Cookie Tracking

The end could be near for cookies, the tiny pieces of code that marketers deploy on Web browsers to track people's online movements, serve targeted advertising and amass valuable user profiles. In the past month, Microsoft, Google, and Facebook have said they are developing systems to plug into and control this river of data in ways that bypass the more than a thousand software companies that place cookies on websites.

The moves could radically shift the balance of power in the $120 billion global digital advertising industry -- and have ad technology companies scrambling to figure out their next play. "There is a Battle Royal brewing," says Scott Meyer, chief executive of Evidon, a company that helps businesses keep track of the cookies on their websites. "Whoever controls access to all that data can charge rent for it -- and has a tremendous advantage going forward."