The sun is setting on Universal Google Analytics

The Google Analytics (GA) that we know and love (or hate) is being put out to pasture. Google announced earlier this year that Universal Analytics properties will stop processing new hits on July 1, 2023, and Universal Analytics 360 properties will stop processing hits on October 1, 2023. Previously processed data in Universal Analytics will be stored for at least six months after these deprecation dates.

Why is Google depreciating Universal GA? “Universal Analytics was built for a generation of online measurement that was anchored in the desktop web, independent sessions and more easily observable data from cookies,” Russell Ketchum, Director, Product Management at Google, said in the announcement. “This measurement methodology is quickly becoming obsolete.”

Google Analytics 4 (GA4), Universal GA’s successor, is a significant step away from the website analytics many users are used to. GA4 operates across both websites and applications, it doesn’t rely on cookies and uses an event-based data model for measurement. It is also far more focused on user’s privacy, with the platform not storing IP addresses, which helps brands comply with the ever-growing number of privacy regulations.

With less than a year to go until Universal GA is gone for good, now is the time to prepare your project for GA4. If you already have a Universal GA account, you can simply upgrade your account using GA4’s Setup Assistant wizard. If you’re setting up a new Google Analytics account, Google has also created a handy ‘getting started’ guide. Google Analytics is the most linked screen media project account type on ScreenMiner. A website can be a vital asset for driving visibility for a project, collecting audience data, and for housing all your complementary content. Are you interested in learning how ScreenMiner can easily aggregate your Google Analytics data with your viewership, video sharing, and social media data? Book a demo today!