Da-Chief
07-18-2008, 11:30
http://i.dslr.net/urls/72/76372.gif (http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/NebuAd-CEO-Defends-Snooping-Tech-96205)
Bob Dykes, the CEO of behavioral advertising firm NebuAD (who I interviewed in February (http://www.corpsman.com/shownews/91797)), spent yesterday before Congress, defending his company's business model of buying your browsing records from ISPs in order to deliver more personalized advertising (want a Perez Hilton lunchbox?). The Los Angeles Times (http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-techblog18-2008jul18,0,7684928.story) notes that Dykes was most criticized for forcing consumers to opt-out of the technology:"That's basically saying silence is consent and as a result you can do whatever you want with their information," Markey said. "I don't think, unless you've got clear affirmative permission, that you should be able to take this incredible leap into the breaching of the privacy of Americans."
I remain somewhat fascinated that nobody in Congress or the media bothers to mention that NebuAD's current opt-out system doesn't actually opt you out of browsing tracking, just tailored ad delivery. Nor does anybody seem aware that ISPs have been selling your clickstream data to websites like Compete (http://compete.com/) for years, without any opt-out option whatsoever.
The Times also notes that Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), chairman of the House telecommunications Internet subcommittee, confirmed he's working on a law that would require all such systems be opt-in. It's hard to think such a push would survive the onslaught of online advertising lobbyists, but it's refreshing to see Congress trying to put the power back into the hands of consumers for a change.
read comment(s) (http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/NebuAd-CEO-Defends-Snooping-Tech-96205)
More...
Bob Dykes, the CEO of behavioral advertising firm NebuAD (who I interviewed in February (http://www.corpsman.com/shownews/91797)), spent yesterday before Congress, defending his company's business model of buying your browsing records from ISPs in order to deliver more personalized advertising (want a Perez Hilton lunchbox?). The Los Angeles Times (http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-techblog18-2008jul18,0,7684928.story) notes that Dykes was most criticized for forcing consumers to opt-out of the technology:"That's basically saying silence is consent and as a result you can do whatever you want with their information," Markey said. "I don't think, unless you've got clear affirmative permission, that you should be able to take this incredible leap into the breaching of the privacy of Americans."
I remain somewhat fascinated that nobody in Congress or the media bothers to mention that NebuAD's current opt-out system doesn't actually opt you out of browsing tracking, just tailored ad delivery. Nor does anybody seem aware that ISPs have been selling your clickstream data to websites like Compete (http://compete.com/) for years, without any opt-out option whatsoever.
The Times also notes that Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), chairman of the House telecommunications Internet subcommittee, confirmed he's working on a law that would require all such systems be opt-in. It's hard to think such a push would survive the onslaught of online advertising lobbyists, but it's refreshing to see Congress trying to put the power back into the hands of consumers for a change.
read comment(s) (http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/NebuAd-CEO-Defends-Snooping-Tech-96205)
More...