Cookie Monster:
How Europe Should Fix the Web’s Pop-Up Economy

Europe's cookie framework has created an unintended economy of pop-up fatigue, high compliance costs, and weak privacy outcomes. Rather than protecting users, blanket consent mandates have penalized independent publishers and small businesses while entrenching centralized digital platforms.

Cookie reform extends beyond data protection: it directly affects independent media funding, small business discovery, and European digital competitiveness. While the European Commission's Digital Omnibus package recognizes the need to simplify these rules, its proposed mechanisms risk locking in the existing system under a different name. Shifting consent controls to browser or operating-system defaults risks handing gatekeepers permanent control over how European audiences reach content.

This event presents Cookie Monster, a new report by Dr. Anda Bologa, Senior Researcher at CEPA/E+Europe. The report puts forward a risk-based alternative: strict limits on intrusive cross-site tracking combined with statutory exemptions for essential low-risk activities, including fraud prevention, security, audience measurement, and ad effectiveness.