Self-Regulatory Principles on Behavioral
Advertising
In
December 2007, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a
set of
proposed principles to guide the development of self-regulation in the area
of online behavioral advertising. Behavioral advertising means the tracking of a
consumer’s activities online – including the searches the consumer has conducted,
the web pages visited, and the content viewed – in order to deliver advertising
targeted to the individual consumer’s interests. One proposal is aimed at more
transparency and consumer control:
"Every
website where data is collected for behavioral advertising should provide a
clear, concise, consumer-friendly, and prominent statement that
(1) data about
consumers'
activities online is being collected at the site for use in providing
advertising about products and services tailored to individual consumers’
interests, and
(2) consumers can choose whether or not to have their information
collected for such purpose. The website should also provide consumers with a
clear, easy-to-use, and accessible method for exercising this option."
The
guidelines are partly intended to adress concerns over the Google-DoubleClick
deal. So far Google is not engaged in behavioral advertising, but declines to
say whether the merger will facilitate
respective plans.
Also see:
Alexis, Alexei, Behavioral Advertising - Search Engine Firms Expected to
Face Continued Hill Scutiny, Electronic Commerce & Law Report 2008, 121-123
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