That's exactly my point? You do not technically need cookies to serve ads. You just find it highly desirable to do so. And yes, I am totally aware that ad netwo

That's exactly my point? You do not technically need cookies to serve ads. You just find it highly desirable to do so. And yes, I am totally aware that ad networks have built their business models around having this information available and that the marketplace has been shaped by these business model. That still doesn't make them needed in a technical sense. If cookies had never existed, then we'd still have online advertising, just as we have advertising in other media that lack this form of feedback.