FTC Says Significant Steps Made For DNT- Still Work To Be Done

FTC Commissioner Julie Brill spoke at the Online Trust Alliance (OTA) Forum today and noted that the “industry has really stepped up to the plate” since the Commission released its Staff Report in Dec. 2010. Since the Report, browser companies including Microsoft, Mozilla, and Apple have implemented different models of Do Not Track. On the advertiser side, the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) has launched a self-regulatory program that uses a cookie-based Advertising Option Icon. “We are looking to see how effective they [industry responses] are and how easy it is for consumers to use these mechanisms,” said Commissioner Brill. She does not believe “we’re going to see a vast exodus of consumers from current Web sites or opting out of the way their information is used.” “Some consumers are going to want relevant ads.” “I don’t see this as a toggle switch- on or off,” but rather “a place where consumers can choose through a dashboard mechanism what they want to do.” She further stated that the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Tracking Protection Working Group is working around issues like “what does tracking mean” and other technical issues. “These are all incredibly positive developments, but it is still a work in progress.”