Update: AOL Launches Privacy Education Program
Oct 31, 2007
In an update to our earlier report on Internet do-not-track lists, AOL announced this morning that it's launching its own consumer awareness campaign designed to give Internet users better notification and more choice when it comes to behavioral advertising. According to a company press release, the program will get the word out via millions of public service ads that are expected to reach over 91 percent of the online audience in the U.S.
The company is also revamping its opt-out process to ensure that users' preferences are better preserved (even if cookies get deleted). AOL's chief privacy officer Jules Polonetsky, who will be a speaker at Tech Policy Summit in March, said, "we want to make the opt-out process as simple and transparent as possible...we urge the industry to join us in ensuring that users who take steps to minimize the data they provide have their choices maintained.
According to a New York Times story about AOL's plans, companies' online ad spend has more than doubled since 2004 and the Interactive Advertising Bureau estimated online ad sales will reach $20 billion this year. Making it a very lucrative and important business for marketers.
To learn more, check out AOL's press release.
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