Break free from ecosystem lock-in
Adobe Launch/Tags is tightly coupled to the Adobe Experience Platform ecosystem. It requires a heavy client-side SDK, locks you into per-profile licensing that escalates at scale, and doesn’t generate vendor identities server-side. Signal gives you the same capabilities without the ecosystem dependency.
Head-to-head comparison
How Datafly Signal and Adobe Launch / Tags compare across the capabilities that matter most to your marketing team.
Browser footprint
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
100 KB+ (Adobe SDK + extensions)
Ecosystem dependency
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Requires Adobe Experience Platform for full value
First-party setup
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
CNAME proxy (detectable by browsers)
Attribution window
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
7 days in Safari (client-set cookies)
Vendor identity
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Requires vendor JavaScript in the browser
Data governance
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Adobe Rules Engine (within ecosystem)
PII protection
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Depends on Adobe configuration
Infrastructure
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Shared Adobe Cloud
Deployment options
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Adobe Cloud only
Pricing
Datafly Signal
Adobe Launch / Tags
Per-profile licensing (escalates with scale)
Key differences
The five areas where choosing Signal over Adobe Launch makes the biggest impact on your marketing performance and bottom line.
Adobe locks you into their ecosystem
Adobe Launch/Tags delivers maximum value only when combined with Adobe Analytics, Adobe Audience Manager, and Adobe Experience Platform. This creates deep ecosystem dependency. Signal is platform-agnostic — it works with Google Analytics, Meta, TikTok, Salesforce, or any API-based vendor. You choose your best-of-breed stack without lock-in.
Per-profile pricing punishes growth
Adobe’s licensing is based on customer profiles. As your audience grows, costs escalate — often dramatically at contract renewal. Signal uses simple per-event pricing. Your costs are predictable, transparent, and don’t penalise you for growing your customer base.
100KB+ of JavaScript slows your site
The Adobe SDK plus extensions can easily exceed 100KB of client-side JavaScript. Every kilobyte impacts page load time, and every second of delay costs conversions. Signal’s 4.2KB collector replaces all of it — pages load faster, Core Web Vitals improve, and conversion rates increase.
No server-side vendor identity
Adobe Launch doesn’t generate vendor identities server-side. You still need vendor JavaScript in the browser to create and maintain cookies for Google, Meta, and other platforms. Signal generates all vendor identities on the server — no vendor scripts needed in the browser at all.
Limited deployment flexibility
Adobe Launch runs on Adobe Cloud. You don’t control where your data is processed or stored. Signal offers hosted, VPC, or hybrid deployment — you choose where your infrastructure lives and keep full control of your data residency.
Who should switch
Signal is the right move if any of these sound familiar.
You're paying too much for profiles
If Adobe's per-profile licensing is eating your budget, Signal's per-event pricing is predictable and doesn't punish growth.
You want best-of-breed, not ecosystem lock-in
If you want to choose the best analytics, attribution, and marketing tools independently, Signal integrates with everything without vendor dependency.
Your site performance is suffering
If 100KB+ of Adobe SDK is dragging down your Core Web Vitals and costing you conversions, Signal's 4.2KB collector eliminates the bloat.
You need deployment flexibility
If data residency, compliance, or control matters, Signal deploys in your cloud, your VPC, or as a managed service. You choose.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Datafly Signal replace Adobe Launch / Tags entirely?
- Yes, for tag management and client-side data collection. Signal runs server-side inside your VPC and delivers to the same destinations Launch activates. Adobe Analytics itself remains a valid destination — Signal can deliver events to Adobe Analytics via its Data Insertion API.
- What about Adobe Experience Platform (AEP)?
- AEP is a separate product — a customer data platform. Signal can feed AEP as a destination via HTTP API, meaning you can keep AEP as your CDP while replacing the Launch-based collection layer with Signal.
- What does per-profile licensing actually cost in practice?
- A 5 million profile AEP licence typically costs £200k+ per year, before per-activation fees. Signal does not license by profile count or destination; pricing scales with event volume alone.
- How do I migrate existing Launch rules to Signal?
- Launch rules translate into Signal pipeline transformations (YAML). Most Launch rule logic — event triggers, field mappings, data element references — has a direct equivalent in Signal’s V2 config format. Custom JavaScript in Launch can be ported to Signal expression functions or (rarely) sandboxed scripts.
- Is this a viable path if we are tied into the broader Adobe Experience Cloud?
- Yes. Signal replaces only the tag management and collection layer. Adobe Target, Adobe Audience Manager, Adobe Journey Optimizer, and Adobe Analytics can continue to operate, with Signal feeding them server-side events that are cleaner than Launch can typically deliver.
Ready to break free from Adobe lock-in?
See exactly how Signal compares to your Adobe setup — with your real data and integrations.