This summer's been a virtual ice cream sundae of consumer privacy concerns — a double scoop of Google's court order to disclose YouTube user logs, topped with TorrentSpy's $115 million fine for destroying user information, sprinkled with ISP's under fire for affiliations with consumer web-surfing behavior technologies like NebuAd, and a big fat cherry of a FaceBook class action suit for its Beacon program. Add to that a decade of malicious spyware, viruses, spam and pop-ups to stoke both government and consumers' fears, and it might just sound like a good time to give up ice cream... but wait.
With online ad spend consistently growing, and consumers flocking to the internet to both buy and to research offline purchases, forward thinking online advertisers look to innovative technologies to helpbridge the gap. Is it possible to bring the relevant and personalized advertising experience consumers demand, while at the same time safeguarding their privacy? We think so.
There is growing body of evidence to support the fact that users not only respond better to, but actually prefer, a more personalized advertising experience. Earlier this year, a Harris Interactive study disclosed that 55% of U.S. adults indicated they would be comfortable with companies using information about their online activities in order to provide customized advertising or content. But on the other side of the fence, support is building for a Congressional measure, dubbed the"Online Privacy Bill of Rights" that would force companies to obtain consumers' consent prior to gathering their web-surfing patterns.
The right solutions will provide both privacy AND relevance to the consumer. If the CAN-SPAM act was any indication, government intervention may not be the answer. Courting consumers' trust might wind up lying squarely on the shoulders of the known and trusted brand advertiser, rather than the not-so-private aggregation of web-surfing patterns by 3rd party behavioral targeters.
The current debate is focusing on the ISP's and targeting companies, without addressing the real issues. For the industry to prosper, we must take a leadership role in being the stewards of our own industry.
– Layne Salter
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