Ahead of ATS Singapore 2025, Zac Messih, head of marketing, APAC, Blis, details the future of targeting across the Southeast Asia region, in the privacy-first, post-cookie landscape. 

Digital advertising in Southeast Asia is going through a major reset. With Singapore and Malaysia tightening privacy laws, and consumers more aware of how their data is used, marketers are being forced to rethink how they reach people.

It’s not just about replacing cookies. The bigger challenge is keeping campaigns effective while respecting privacy. Traditional tracking methods are disappearing, and the playbook that worked for the past decade is becoming outdated.

But this shift brings new possibilities. There’s a growing focus on using real-world signals and contextual data to understand intent and behaviour, without needing to know exactly who someone is. For marketers, this isn’t just a compliance issue. It’s a chance to build smarter, future-proof strategies that work better for brands and consumers alike.

Privacy is getting personal in Southeast Asia

The privacy conversation isn’t just happening in Brussels or California. It’s landed in Southeast Asia, and regulators are catching up fast. Singapore and Malaysia have both modernised their privacy frameworks to align more closely with global standards like GDPR.

Singapore’s updated Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) introduced tougher rules around consent, mandatory breach notifications, and stronger enforcement. Organisations must now appoint a Data Protection Officer, with a stronger focus on transparency and accountability. The Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) says these updates aim to build trust while supporting digital innovation.

Malaysia followed with a major PDPA amendment in 2024, introducing data portability and mandatory breach reporting. It’s a clear signal that the region is moving towards a more privacy-conscious future, and advertisers must adapt.

For media agencies, especially those planning and buying on behalf of brands, these changes raise important questions. Understanding the nuances of each country’s regulations is now essential not just for compliance, but for embedding trust into every stage of the media plan.

This isn’t just legal housekeeping. It’s a wake-up call for brands still relying on tracking tactics that no longer reflect what people expect.

The cookie is crumbling. And so should our assumptions

Third-party cookies once formed the backbone of digital advertising. They promised precision and performance, but they came with trade-offs no longer acceptable to consumers or regulators.

Google’s decision to delay cookie deprecation in Chrome until 2025 made headlines, but the direction hasn’t changed. Apple’s IDFA restrictions and long-standing blocks by Safari and Firefox have already made tracking harder across devices.

The decline of cookies reveals a bigger issue: over-reliance on systems that often over-promised and under-delivered. Many brands were tracking everything yet struggling to tie data to meaningful outcomes.

As IAB SEA+India noted in its 2023 outlook, marketers must move beyond identity-based targeting. The focus now should be on what people do, where they go, and the signals they leave behind, while keeping privacy front and centre.

The power of place: location as a privacy-safe signal

With identifiers disappearing, marketers are revisiting signals rooted in behaviour. Geography is emerging as one of the most powerful.

In cities like Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, where movement patterns are well-defined, location data reveals intent more effectively than a static demographic. A daily MRT commute or regular visits to a gym in Bangsar tell a richer story than a third-party tag ever could.

Location data stands out because it’s both rich in context and privacy-resilient. Postcode-level data doesn’t reveal personal identity, but it offers strong predictive value.

For planners and strategists, this opens up new ways to build sharper audience segments and media plans. Platforms like Blis support this through tools such as Audience Explorer, which surfaces real-world behaviour at a hyperlocal level. The result is privacy-first targeting that’s smarter and more enduring.

Beyond impressions: connecting attention to action

The real challenge in marketing today isn’t reach, it’s proving that reach delivers results. Impressions and clicks are still used, but they often fall short of what brands care about: store visits, purchases, or brand shifts.

In sectors like retail, FMCG, and QSRs, where transactions often happen offline, knowing whether a campaign drove someone into a store is far more valuable than knowing they saw an ad.

For media buyers under pressure to demonstrate ROI, this shift is welcome. Outcome-based strategies that tie exposure to measurable actions like footfall or sales uplift resonate more with clients and finance teams.

By combining location intelligence with anonymised spend data and demographic overlays, marketers can identify high-intent areas and measure real impact. Mastercard’s 2024 Southeast Asia report shows how anonymised transaction data reveals purchasing trends by area, all while maintaining privacy.

By layering intent-rich postcodes with real-world signals, marketers can run smarter campaigns and measure results with control groups. The goal isn’t more impressions, it’s more impact.

Future-proofing with privacy-first targeting

Moving forward isn’t about replacing cookies with equally invasive tactics. It’s about rethinking targeting altogether.

The most durable strategies now rely on consented, anonymised signals that scale without compromising trust. For Southeast Asian marketers, this means focusing on context and intent instead of one-to-one personalisation.

Tools that map postcode-level trends like spikes in gym traffic or weekend shopping offer more sustainable ways to reach the right people at the right time.

Combining behavioural patterns with geographic precision leads to stronger campaign outcomes. It’s less about who someone is and more about what they’re doing and why it matters.

Many agencies are already building this into their planning frameworks. In today’s landscape, trust isn’t just expected, it’s a competitive edge.

Final thoughts: turning challenge into opportunity

The end of cookies and the rise of stricter privacy rules might feel like a disruption. But for marketers across Southeast Asia, it’s also an opportunity to reset.

This is the moment to build strategies that are not only more compliant but also more effective. Trust is becoming just as important as targeting. And the brands that thrive will be those that understand what people care about, without needing to know who they are.

By using geo-behavioural data and consented insights, marketers can connect attention to action in ways that are meaningful and measurable.

The rules are changing. But so are the tools. And those who adapt now won’t just survive the post-cookie era, they’ll lead it.

Final tickets for ATS Singapore 2025, to be hosted at the Sands Expo & Convention centre, are available via the dedicated events hub.