In a significant move to streamline the digital landscape, the German government has taken steps to address the overwhelming presence of cookie banners on the internet. This initiative, driven by the coalition government, was passed by the Bundestag with the support of the ruling factions, despite abstention from the Left Party.

Aims of the New Regulation

The primary aim of the new regulation is to provide users with a more user-friendly alternative to the myriad individual decisions required by existing consent banners. The intention is to allow recognized services to enable end-users to give their consent on a long-term basis. These decisions can be tracked and reviewed at any time, ensuring transparency and control for users.

Participation in this new system, however, remains voluntary for website operators. There is also no implementation of blanket pre-settings for tracking cookies. Under the new plan, users still need to make individual decisions on each site. Importantly, even if a user chooses not to consent through a recognized service, websites can still repeatedly show cookie banners.

Technical Implementation

Web servers using recognized services are expected to identify users via cookies or similar methods to restore settings, measure reach, follow activities, and deliver personalized advertising. This means that constant consent clicks on the same websites could become a thing of the past.

Criticism from Consumer Advocates and Opposition

Consumer advocates, such as the Federation of German Consumer Organizations, have criticized the regulation, arguing that it does not compel website operators to honor the decisions of users who refuse cookies. Websites could continue to ask for consent, making permanent only those opting in. This could undermine privacy-friendly settings users might have made in their browsers, forcing browsers to store cookies against these settings, disadvantaging manufacturers aiming to protect users from tracking.

Future Outlook and Government Strategy

The regulation will be reviewed two years post-enactment to assess whether voluntary participation is sufficient and how the market evolves. Opposition parties have questioned the overall effort and expressed doubts about the potential interest in developing consent management services.

Germany's Digital State Secretary, Daniela Kluckert of the FDP, noted during a critical committee session that while the regulation allows for the creation of such services, it does not mandate them. Decisions made via recognized services are valid until revoked, unless the context or expectations suggest otherwise.

Recognition and Implementation Costs

The Federal Commissioner for Data Protection will decide on the recognition of these services after examining a security concept, with the evaluation subject to fees based on time. The government aims to avoid absorbing estimated annual costs of approximately 79,000 euros. Recognition by this independent body is expected to create incentives for consumers and website operators to adopt these services.

The regulation is based on Paragraph 26 of the Telecommunications Digital Services Data Protection Act. The Bundesrat still needs to approve it.

For more details, you can read the original article on Heise.