Losing Links: Are Marketers Ready For Google's FDL Shutdown?

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Losing Links: Are Marketers Ready For Google's FDL Shutdown?

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Email marketers are facing a looming deadline, and some are not even aware of it. 

Google is shutting down its Firebase Dynamic Links (FDL) on August 25. FDL is a deep linking tool used by more than 3 million app developers to drive email campaigns, digital engagement and customer journeys. 

Awareness depends on company size-- 80% of large enterprises know about it, versus 63% of small businesses, according to the 2025 Mobile App Linking Readiness Report, a study by URLgenius. 

But only 28% have chosen a replacement for FDL, and another 64% are weighing their options. 

Firms that drive more than 60% of their revenue from mobile apps are 56% more likely to be concerned about the shutdown. 

What’s keeping the laggards from choosing a replacement? Many suffer from software kit development (SDK) fatigue and are concerned about technical risks. 

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In addition, 78% worry about app bloat and technical overhead. And 75% are concerned about privacy and data security threats. 

But it is a serious issue and there are now less than two months to go. 

Email marketers could be particularly hurt by delaying.

“The biggest risk to email and digital campaigns is link failure --because many marketers don’t realize Firebase is powering the links behind the scenes," says Brian Klais, founder and CEO of URLgenius. 

Klais explains: “The free "page.link" Firebase links often appear in email, SMS, and QR campaigns, and are used to drive app installs via app stores, sometimes in tandem with link shorteners. When Firebase Dynamic Links shuts down, those will silently break -- disrupting onboarding flows, install tracking, and in-app experiences, often without the brand knowing. 

There is another complication. “Since these links were often set up years ago by developers, agencies, or platform partners, many teams aren’t even aware they’re at risk,” Klais says, adding that “Google’s notice hasn’t reached all the right stakeholders, which is why this is shaping up to be a hidden infrastructure failure in the making.”

Mobile Marketing

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June 30, 2025 at 11:39AM