43% of Users Consent to Their Personal Data Being Tracked on iOS Games Globally

Research conducted by GameAnalytics provides insight into user behavior regarding Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework within the mobile gaming sector. The study, which analyzed data from 121 million users on iOS 14.5+ devices between July 1 and August 31, 2021, reveals that 43% of global users consented to personal data tracking for mobile games. This figure suggests a higher opt-in rate for gaming applications compared to broader industry estimates, which have previously reported significantly lower engagement with tracking prompts.

Regional data indicates that 36% of users in the United States opted into tracking, while 46.2% of U.S. users explicitly declined. Globally, 39.8% of users declined to provide consent. Additionally, the study identified that the ATT framework was restricted on 17.2% of devices worldwide and 20.5% of devices in the U.S., a status attributed to either user-defined settings or the use of managed devices. For approximately 31.5% of global devices, the consent status remained undetermined, indicating that these users had not yet been prompted or had not yet responded to the tracking request.

The analysis highlights a notable discrepancy between these findings and other industry reports, potentially stemming from the specific focus on gaming-related data. The researchers suggest that the higher opt-in rates may be influenced by the proactive strategies of mobile game developers who have actively encouraged users to provide consent following the implementation of iOS 14.5. These findings offer a nuanced perspective on the impact of privacy-focused OS changes on the mobile gaming ecosystem.