Google, AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft To US: Don’t Tread On Me
Posted by: siliconalleyinsider in Silicon Alley Insider
Google, AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft, along with a host of other advertising, agency and marketer associations, took another step in pressing their case that the government doesn’t need to regulate the collecting of data for ad-targeting purposes by search engines, websites, advertisers and ad networks. They’ve crafted their own set of rules in the hope of heading off potential regulation in Congress.
For months, a wide-ranging group of marketers, portals, publishers and ad networks represented by industry groups — such as the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the American Association of Advertising Agencies, the Direct Marketing Association and the Association of National Advertisers — have been working on “self-regulatory principles,” which were released today. They require sites to provide prominent disclosure of who is collecting information and the ability to opt out, inform consumers of any change to a site’s privacy policy, and offer special protections for sensitive data connected to health and financial issues or children, among other things.