[A2k] EU advertisers organizing vs. targeting privacy

[jeff@democraticmedia.org]

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New Media Age


December 6, 2007


ANALYSIS;
Ad industry is sure privacy fears are unfounded

SECTION: Pg. 14

LENGTH: 1069 words

With the news that the EU is looking into privacy issues of targeted
online ads, the industry is confident it will find their policies don't
infringe individuals' rights

Last week the UK online ad industry revealed it was uniting to defend
itself against an EU investigation into invasion of privacy by targeted
ads.

The move was in response to Gabriele Loewnau, head of the EU's Article
29 Working Party on data issues, who said his party will be
concentrating next year on the "hot topic" of invasion of privacy issues
by targeted online advertising.

Networks and suppliers including Adknowledge, Advertising.com, Revenue
Science, Tacoda and Wunderloop are planning to form a UK trade body,
backed by the IAB, to address the EU's concerns.

The main thrust of criticism of targeted advertising is that it monitors
user habits, including potentially sensitive information like IP
addresses and online purchases.

Matt Simpson, the Starcom director responsible for P&G's online
planning/buying in EMEA, says, "The privacy issue doesn't apply to all
behavioural targeting. Browser-based behavioural targeting is okay. But
when an advertiser retargets someone who has just opened a credit card
based on that sensitive information, then it's a problem."

Jeremy Mason, European director of client services at Revenue Science,
believes the EU will clamp down in three ways. "I believe it will tell
networks they'll have to be audited by an independent party, they'll
have to have a highly visible privacy policy, and the user will have to
have the ability to opt out. A UK trade body to address these issues
would definitely be welcome."

Taking action

To date in the UK there has been little or no action on combating fears
of privacy invasion because behavioural targeting is relatively new. In
the US, however, where most behavioural targeting networks originate,
the privacy issue has reared its head a number of times.

Social network Facebook was forced to make changes to its Beacon ad
model following criticism from its users and US civil action group
MoveOn (nma.co.uk 30.11.07). A petition against the targeted ad platform
- which tells members of their friends' online purchases - reached
20,000 members before Facebook added an opt-in box that users must check
before any sensitive information can be sent to their friends.

"Sites like Facebook are revolutionising how we speak to each other, but
we need too make sure they place the needs and privacy rights of their
users ahead of the needs of corporate advertisers," says Adam Green, a
spokesman for MoveOn.

In response to privacy complaints, AOL, owner of Advertising.com and
Tacoda, has started running banner ads in the US telling users how to
opt out of having their journeys tracked by behavioural targeting
software.

Meanwhile, the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) - a group of network
advertisers including Atlas, Blue Lithium, DoubleClick and Revenue
Science formed in 1999 - educates consumers about privacy issues and
allows them to opt out of targeted advertising by clicking the 'opt out
request' button on its website.

Paul Goad, MD of Tacoda, says this would be the best model to replicate
in the UK. "The NAI is a very good initiative. Any network can be a
member, but it's also a platform where the public can go to opt out."

Revenue Science's Mason goes one step further and claims that a UK or
European arm of the NAI has already been mooted.

"Discussions about launching the NAI over here were held earlier this
year," he says. "With the news that the EU is planning to investigate
privacy issues, and UK networks and suppliers uniting, I'm sure these
discussions, involving the IAB and perhaps IAB Europe, will escalate."

J Trevor Hughes, executive director of the NAI, confirms this. "We're a
global programme and hope to see many more European companies engage
with the programme in the future," he says.

No concerns

Despite the behavioural targeting industry realising it could face
intense media scrutiny when the EU begins its investigations next year,
several UK companies appear not to be phased by the developments.

Bruce Daisley, head of online sales at Emap, which uses Revenue Science
for its behavioural targeting, believes the investigations will come to
nothing.

"No behavioural targeting technology can identify who someone is because
it considers groups of tens of thousands," he said. "The networks have a
very high moral code and I'm sure when the EU investigates them it will
come back saying they're whiter than white."

Donald Hamilton, MD of Wunderloop, says, "I have no qualms about the
investigations as our product isn't infringing any privacy laws. As long
as we keep looking at people as audience segments, we're fine. If we
start looking at IP addresses and blending information about who that
person is, then it becomes an issue."

Tim Brown, MD of Blue Lithium, says, "The benefit of behavioural
targeting is that we can provide users with more relevant advertising
and content. Surely this is a good thing."

Goad points out that Tacoda's behavioural targeting reaches groups of
people in their hundreds and thousands, not individuals, so doesn't
infringe on privacy. Despite this, he believes there's still a need to
ease consumers' worries.

"I definitely think our industry needs to be more proactive at educating
consumers about targeting online, such as what cookies are and how they
track users," he says. "Most of it's anonymous and this needs to be made
clear to the public."

While the precise details of the EU investigation are not yet known, the
EU has previously been quick to clamp down on companies it has found
guilty of invasion of privacy.

In June Google bowed to pressure from the EU Article 29 Working Party
and reduced the maximum time it could keep users' personal search data
to 18 months, from its previous 30-year policy. The internet giant had
originally suggested a two-year policy, which the EU rejected.

Guy Phillipson, CEO of the IAB, which is backing the UK trade body,
says, "Privacy is clearly going to be on everyone's agenda next year.
It's a key issue we'll need to address."

The Article 29 Working Party has confirmed that it's meeting this week
to discuss the issue of targeted online advertising in greater detail,
but couldn't comment until after discussions have taken place.

Whatever it concludes, it looks certain to have an impact on the way
digital advertising regulates itself in the future.