At A Glance
Third-party data has moved from a fast-growth, loosely governed environment into one defined by trust, transparency, and compliance. Marketers are now looking for partners with institutional experience and rigorous data standards—not opportunistic providers chasing short-term gains. The brands that win will treat responsible data sourcing as the foundation of their customer strategy.How third-party data has changed and why it matters in 2025
For years, third-party data operated in an expansive, lightly regulated marketplace: fast-moving, high-growth, and filled with players eager to capitalize on digital marketing’s demand for audience insights.
That era is over. Regulatory scrutiny, stricter compliance standards, and rising consumer expectations have already transformed the market. Today, third-party data belongs to partners with proven expertise and built-in compliance. This isn’t a space for opportunistic newcomers; it’s one that rewards long-term commitment and trust.
Even the rapid rise of retail media networks (RMNs) reflects this shift. These platforms are built on long-standing, trusted relationships between brands, retailers, and data partners, utilizing that foundation in new ways to reach audiences responsibly and effectively.
The best providers have already made this transition; those still “shifting” are catching up.
From growth to governance: A market defined by accountability
The third-party data ecosystem has matured. After years of rapid expansion and recalibration, the market has stabilized around a new standard: data quality and regulatory accountability.
Third-party data enriches first-party insights with attributes such as income, gender, and interests that round out the customer view. But when the industry grew unchecked, unreliable providers diluted quality and trust. This resulted in a decline in the overall value and reliability of the third-party data marketplace.
That breakdown led directly to today’s privacy laws, now active across more than 20 U.S. states and numerous countries worldwide. These regulations reflect a permanent consumer expectation: relevance delivered responsibly. Consumers aren’t rejecting personalization; they’re rejecting how it’s been done in the past. They still want relevant, tailored experiences, but they expect brands to deliver them through ethical, transparent data practices.
Does third-party data still matter in a privacy-first era?
Third-party data isn’t disappearing, if anything, it’s become more important. Brands will always need additional insight to deepen customer understanding; first-party data alone only reflects what’s already known.
The industry has entered a mature phase where data quality and compliance are table stakes. The companies leading today built their data infrastructure on rigorous standards, regulatory foresight, and transparent governance.
That same foundation powers the next wave of innovation, including the explosive growth of RMNs. RMNs rely on responsibly sourced third-party data to enrich shopper insights, validate audiences, and extend addressability beyond their own walls. Trusted data partners make that expansion possible, connecting retail environments with broader media ecosystems while maintaining privacy and accuracy.
High-quality, compliant third-party data remains essential because it:
Fills knowledge gaps
Good third-party marketing data complements first-party insights with demographic, behavioral, and transactional context, providing the missing puzzle pieces to complete the full customer profile.
Improves accuracy
Filling in gaps in customer understanding helps you identify, reach, and engage your customers more effectively. This helps improve the delivery of relevant messages and offers to your customers and prospects across channels.
Builds connections
Third-party data helps brands build loyalty with consumers by speaking to their interests, and intent behind purchases.
Fuels prospecting
Third-party data can help you find your best prospects. By enriching customer files, you can understand who your best customers are, and how to find more of them. By modeling this data, you can determine who your best customers are and source prospects similar to them.
Advancements in AI and machine learning are reshaping how this data is used across the ecosystem. What was once primarily a buy-side tactic is now expanding into the sell-side, where publishers and platforms are using data to curate, package, and activate audiences more intelligently. As AI enhances modeling accuracy and automation, third-party data will play an even greater role in connecting brands and consumers in more meaningful, privacy-conscious ways.
The bottom line: it’s not about having more data; it’s about having better, verified data you can trust.
How can you spot a trustworthy data partner?
The strongest third-party data partners demonstrate accountability through experience, infrastructure, and integrity.
Look for providers that:
Operate with clear data principles
Trustworthy partners publish and follow codified data principles that guide every step of data handling. Experian adheres to a set of global data principles designed to ensure ethical practices and consumer protection across all our operations.
Treat new privacy regulations as routine
For mature providers, evolving privacy laws are routine, not disruptive. At Experian, privacy and compliance have long been built in. Every partner and audience goes through Experian’s rigorous review process to meet federal, state, and local consumer privacy laws. Decades of experience have shaped processes that emphasize risk mitigation, transparency, and accountability.
Stay deeply connected
Leading data companies maintain deep relationships with technology partners and industry and regulatory groups to ensure that ethical data practices are put into practice and their customers are aware of platform-specific regulations. Experian’s relationships with demand-side platforms (DSPs), supply-side platforms (SSPs), and even social platforms like Meta, ensures we are aware of any platform-specific initiatives that may impact audience targeting. We’re also active participants in many trade groups to ensure that the industry puts ethical data practices in place to ensure consumers still receive personalized experiences but their data usage and collection is opt-in, transparent and handled with their privacy at the center of the transaction.
Have a proven track record in the industry
Longevity matters in a regulated and compliance-driven industry. Providers that have thrived through economic cycles and regulatory shifts are the ones equipped for the future. The ability to source high-quality third-party data is core to their business, not an afterthought. Our data is ranked #1 in accuracy by Truthset, giving our clients confidence that every decision they make is backed by the industry’s most reliable insights.
Why the future of third-party data depends on accountability
The third-party data industry has already crossed the threshold from expansion to accountability. The companies leading this era have established their credibility through governance and proof. The future belongs to providers that:
- Build with regulatory foresight
- Maintain rigorous quality assurance
- Prioritize partnership over profit
The Wild West days are long gone. The third-party data ecosystem is now defined by stability, transparency, and shared responsibility.
Partner with Experian for data you can trust and results you can prove
When accuracy and accountability define success, you need a partner built on both. Work with the company that’s setting the standard for responsible data-driven marketing and helping brands connect with people in meaningful, measurable ways.
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About the author
Jeremy Meade
VP, Marketing Data Product & Operations, Experian
Jeremy Meade is VP, Marketing Data Product & Operations at Experian Marketing Services. With over 15 years of experience in marketing data, Jeremy has consistently led data product, engineering, and analytics functions. He has also played a pivotal role in spearheading the implementation of policies and procedures to ensure compliance with state privacy regulations at two industry-leading companies.
Third-party data FAQs
Third-party data is information collected by organizations that don’t have a direct relationship with the consumer. It supplements first-party data by adding demographic, behavioral, and interest-based insights.
Privacy regulations are reshaping data practices because consumers expect control over how their information is used. That expectation led directly to today’s privacy laws, now active across more than 20 U.S. states and numerous countries worldwide. These regulations reflect a permanent consumer expectation: relevance delivered responsibly. Consumers aren’t rejecting personalization; they’re rejecting how it’s been done in the past. They still want relevant, tailored experiences, but they expect brands to deliver them through ethical, transparent data practices. Laws like the CCPA and state-level privacy acts enforce this expectation, holding brands and data providers accountable for the ethical use of data.
Yes, brands can still use third-party data safely when sourced responsibly. Partnering with established, compliant providers like Experian ensures both legal protection and data accuracy.
Experian adheres to a set of global data principles designed to ensure ethical practices and consumer protection across all our operations. At Experian, privacy and compliance have long been built in. Every partner and audience goes through Experian’s rigorous review process to meet federal, state, and local consumer privacy laws. Decades of experience have shaped processes that emphasize risk mitigation, transparency, and accountability. Experian’s relationships with demand-side platforms (DSPs), supply-side platforms (SSPs), and even social platforms like Meta, ensures we are aware of any platform-specific initiatives that may impact audience targeting. We’re also active participants in many trade groups to ensure that the industry puts ethical data practices in place to ensure consumers still receive personalized experiences but their data usage and collection is opt-in, transparent and handled with their privacy at the center of the transaction.
Marketers should look for transparency, longevity, and evidence of compliance when looking for a data partner. The best partners can clearly explain how their data is sourced, validated, and maintained. Read Experian’s guide on how you can swipe right on the perfect data partner here.
Latest posts
Cuebiq’s mission, as an offline intelligence and measurement company, is to quantify how digital marketing impacts offline consumer behavior. This case study shows how Cuebiq partnered with Experian to continue delivering in-store lift analyses despite signal loss. To achieve this, Cuebiq used Experian’s Activity Feed to resolve digital ad exposures to mobile ad IDs, so that marketers could know the effectiveness of their media campaigns on in-store visits and purchases. Even as Google backs away from third-party cookie deprecation, the need for flexible, future-proof identity solutions remains. By working with Experian, Cuebiq could help their clients more accurately measure their campaigns and optimize their media. Challenge: Increasing match rates across digital platforms Cuebiq wanted to enhance how well they connect digital ad exposures, across web, mobile, and connected TV (CTV), to mobile ad IDs (MAIDs), of consumers who visited their clients’ stores. 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To learn more, visit their website at www.cuebiq.com Latest posts
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As a result, all IP signals and UID2s will be resolved back to Experian’s household and individual profiles and their associated devices, which means marketers and platforms can better understand the full customer journey and reach people across their devices. Experian’s toolkit of cookieless solutions maintains addressability and ensures marketers can continue to do privacy-safe behavioral targeting at scale As the industry braces for the challenges posed by signal loss and evolving regulation, the unparalleled breadth, depth, and stability of Experian’s Graph empowers our partners across the ad tech ecosystem to confidently achieve their objectives and navigate uncertainty. What are you waiting for? Fill out the form to begin testing one of these cookieless solutions. Get started About the author Budi Tanzi, VP of Product and Solution Engineering, Experian Marketing Services Budi Tanzi is the Vice President of Product at Experian Marketing Services, overseeing all Identity Products. Prior to joining Experian, Budi worked at various stakeholders of the ad-tech ecosystem, such as Tapad, Sizmek and StrikeAd. During his career, he held leadership roles in both Product Management and Solution Engineering. Budi has been living in New York for almost 11 years and enjoys being outdoors as well as sailing around NYC whenever possible. Latest posts
At Experian, we power data-driven advertising through connectivity. Today, we're excited to introduce our newest offering, which drives that connectivity: Experian Third-Party Onboarding. This new capability empowers third-party data providers by streamlining the monetization of their audiences through Experian’s expansive network of over 20 programmatic, social, and TV platforms. Data onboarding typically presents challenges, including complicated integration processes, limited ID matching capabilities, and opaque pricing structures, all compounded by less-than-ideal customer service. Experian Third-Party Onboarding eliminates the common barriers in the onboarding process and leaves users with a simple yet powerful solution for data providers to increase the adoption of their audiences and maximize their revenue. A leap forward in data connectivity Experian Third-Party Onboarding builds upon the investment and infrastructure used to distribute Experian's own audience segments. Notably, in 2020, we began the transformation of moving away from third-party partners to using our own direct connections for audience distribution. Compared to the competition, Experian’s Third-Party Onboarding capabilities offers data providers: Enhanced programmatic addressability: 50% increase in programmatic addressability compared to the competition. Superior CTV addressability: As a top identity partner in TV, we provide a 73% increase in CTV addressability as compared to the competition. Vast digital reach: Approximately 3.8B digital IDs that are active and addressable on a weekly basis. The first data providers to use Experian’s third-party onboarding capabilities are Adentro, Kontext, L2, and Webbula. "Moving beyond cookie-only third-party onboarding solutions is critical for our users in the age of cookie deprecation, and Experian's identity capabilities do that. Experian's match rates and speed to turn around audiences to a large number of platforms is critical for our political buyers during this very busy campaign season."Paul Westcott, EVP, L2 Benefits to Experian Third-Party Onboarding Experian’s unique onboarding process enhances current capabilities and sets new benchmarks in the industry. The comprehensive benefits of Experian’s Third-Party Onboarding include: Future-proof your addressability: With Experian's advanced digital and offline identity capabilities embedded within this new onboarding solution, user audiences will automatically be expanded to a deep set of identifiers (e.g., CTV IDs, MAIDs, IPs, UID2s, ID5s, and more) to ensure scale and maximum addressability. Seize the CTV opportunity: Tap into the explosive growth of connected TV (CTV), the fastest-growing major ad channel in the U.S., with connectivity to more than ten TV destinations. Simple pricing structure: Straightforward revenue-share pricing structure free of hidden costs, ensuring clarity and trust in all financial dealings. Streamlined reporting: Gain valuable insights with self-service reporting available within days of receiving data from the platform. Drive growth and adoption with faster reporting, allowing you to track usage by segment, advertiser, or destination effortlessly. Efficiency and support: A self-service, user-friendly interface gives you control over taxonomy field names, CPMs, and destinations. It is complemented by a dedicated account team, which reduces the burden on user resources and guarantees a seamless experience from onboarding to activation to reporting. Support for syndicated and custom audiences: Seamlessly onboard bulk syndicated audience taxonomies and custom audiences to programmatic, social, and TV platforms through our existing integrations. “Both activation platforms and data providers familiar with our world-class identity capabilities and top-notch service have proactively asked Experian to provide third-party onboarding services. After listening carefully to how we can improve upon their current setup, we are excited to bring a solution to the market that directly addresses their needs.”Scott Kozub, VP, Product Management, Experian Stay ahead of the curve Maintaining a competitive edge with your data is no longer optional; it's imperative. Experian Third-Party Onboarding arms users with advanced connectivity, unparalleled data expertise, and thorough support, positioning them at the forefront of industry innovations. Reach out to our team today to learn more about Experian Third-Party Onboarding and how it can make your data go further. Go further now Read the AdExchanger press release about Third-Party Onboarding Learn more Latest posts