White House, DOC AND FTC Commend DAA’S Self-Regulatory Program to Protect Consumers Online Privacy

WASHINGTON (Feb. 23, 2012) — Today at a White House gathering with leaders of the business community, Director of the National Economic Council and Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, Gene Sperling, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, John Bryson, and Federal Trade Commission Chairman, Jon Leibowitz, commended the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) and its members for the significant progress over the past three years to implement a strong privacy protection program for consumers.

Guided by recommendations from the Administration, Congress, and the FTC, the DAA's Self-Regulatory Program, developed by the nation's leading media, marketing, and technology companies, provides consumers with a consistent online experience with transparency and choice regarding the collection and use of web viewing data.

Demonstrating its ongoing commitment to the progress of its Program, the DAA also announced today that it will immediately begin work to recognize browser-based choices with a set of tools by which consumers can express their preferences under the DAA Principles.

"The Administration, Congress, and the FTC have been pushing the business community for several years to make sure consumers are aware of the information practices occurring online and providing choice to consumers regarding the collection and use of information about them," said Stu Ingis, DAA General Counsel. "The DAA is an embodiment of leading companies responding to this call."

Ingis further stated, "We are delighted that the Obama Administration has recognized the DAA Self-Regulatory Program as an effective way to protect online consumer privacy, while not encumbering the innovations that underpin the internet and its potential to drive long-term economic growth. The DAA Self-Regulatory Program will continue to meet consumers' evolving online privacy needs. Congress is also to be given significant credit here; for many years they have held hearings on the privacy implications of advances in technology," he added. "Many in the Congress have indicated that the business community is best positioned to provide consumers with choices while not interfering with the innovative offerings revolutionizing society."

Today's announcement is another important milestone in the advertising industry's 40-year history of effective self-regulation and will help to further trust, transparency, knowledge and control surrounding the collection and use of consumers' Web viewing data.

In 2009 the DAA launched the Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising (OBA) by introducing seven 'Self-Regulatory Principles for OBA.' In 2010 the DAA announced detailed practices and unveiled the 'Advertising Option Icon.' By clicking on the Icon, individuals are linked to a consumer choice page with a clear disclosure statement that enables them to exercise choice with respect to interest-based ads from participating companies.

Continuing to work alongside the FTC, in 2011 the DAA expanded the scope of the Self-Regulatory Program beyond OBA with the 'Self-Regulatory Principles for Multi-Site Data,' which established a clear framework governing the collection of online data from a particular computer or device regarding web viewing over time and across non-affiliated websites. These new Principles codified existing industry practices prohibiting the collection or use of Multi-Site Data for the purpose of any adverse determination concerning employment, credit, health treatment or insurance eligibility, as well as specific protections for sensitive data concerning children, health and financial data.

The DAA's Self-Regulatory Program has achieved widespread adoption. The Icon is now being served via more than 900 billion ad impressions per month.

Building on that momentum, last month the DAA launched the 'Your AdChoices' public education advertising campaign designed to inform consumers about interest-based advertising and how they could take greater control of their online privacy through the 'AdChoices' Icon. The education campaign includes banner advertising that directs consumers to the Icon and links to a new, informational website, http://www.youradchoices.com/.

About The DAA Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising

The DAA Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising was launched in 2010 by the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA), a consortium of the nation's largest media and marketing associations including the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A's), the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI). These associations and their thousands of members are committed to developing effective self-regulatory solutions to consumer choice for web viewing data.

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Antonia Caamaño
CooperKatz & Company for DAA
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Jamie Bezozo
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