DAA Blog

Photo: DAA Summit 2016 Accountability Panel Moderator Michael A. Signorelli of Venable LLP

Self-regulatory industry education and enforcement of Digital Advertising Alliance Principles have the flexibility to keep up with the constantly changing media platforms and the resulting novel formats for interest-based advertising. To meet this ongoing challenge, the DAA Program and its Accountability Partners [Direct Marketing Association and Council of Better Business Bureaus] provide casework that serves as an evergreen resource to all participants in the advertising ecosystem.  Each DAA enforcement represents a learning experience, not only for the companies involved but for all stakeholders.  Accountability builds a stronger marketplace by building understanding and trust between companies and the consumers with whom they engage.

“I don’t think there’s another self-regulatory program or industry that has more cops on the beat,” said Michael Signorelli, partner, Venable LLP and counsel, Digital Advertising Alliance, who moderated the panel. “We have the BBB, the DMA, and the NAI [DAA co-founding association Network Advertising Initiative] all helping us ensure that we have responsible data practices.”  NAI CEO Leigh Freund introduced the panel discussion.

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[PHOTO: During DAA Summit 2016, DAA General Counsel Stu Ingis discusses the state of self-regulation and current Federal Trade Commission priorities with Maneesha Mithal of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.]

“Not everyone realizes that one of the key partners of the DAA is the FTC,” said Stuart Ingis, partner, Venable LLP and general counsel, Digital Advertising Alliance, as he moderated a highly interactive policy discussion at the DAA Summit 2016 in Silicon Beach, Los Angeles. “We appreciate all that the Commission has done — and we’d like to hear about the agenda and continued partnership with the DAA.”

FTC Agenda at-a-Glance

According to speaker Maneesha Mithal, associate director, division of privacy and identity protection, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, the FTC’s attention over the coming months will be focused on three main topic areas: sensitive information, big data, and the Internet of Things (IoT). “We feel that is where we at the FTC should be focusing a lot of our resources… and we have...

Association leaders affiliated with the founding of the Digital Advertising Alliance announced their support today (November 16, 2015) with the unveiling of DAA guidance, "Application of the DAA Principles of Transparency and Control to Data Used Across Devices."

Their reaction includes:

Nancy Hill, President and CEO, 4As (American Association of Advertising Agencies)

"This announcement shows once again why robust self-regulatory regimes can be so effective and adaptable. The cross-device ecosystem has exploded in recent years, and - with this announcement - the DAA has moved quickly to ensure that the application of its Principles has kept pace with those new technologies."

James Edmund Datri, President and CEO, American Advertising Federation

"The digital advertising industry is committed to providing consumers with robust information and choice over the interest-based advertising they receive, across new channels and devices. We are pleased that the DAA continues to demonstrate the value of its Self-Regulatory Principles to millions of consumers now using tablets, smartphones, and other devices."

Bob Liodice, President and CEO, Association of National Advertisers

"Lasting consumer relationships with brands are built on trust, and the DAA program builds that trust by giving consumers information and control over the...

From time to time, we are called upon to offer information about how the DAA self-regulatory process works, along with details about the DAA Principles and program, their scope, and how they are enforced, as well as other points. In the past, we have provided such information in Congressional hearings, Federal Trade Commission proceedings, and worldwide technology standard forums, among other public proceedings.

This past week, we had the opportunity to provide comments to a “new” stakeholder in interest-based advertising (IBA), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), with regard to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on “Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services.”

We used the occasion of the FCC’s NPRM to inform and to educate the regulatory body about the successful implementation and adoption of an independently enforced, consumer-focused self-regulatory program unlike anything which has existed before. In our comments to the FCC, we articulated the flexibility of our self-regulation program -- well into its fifth year of marketplace implementation. We described the establishment of DAA Principles in 2009, its expansion to Multi-Site Data Collection in 2011, Mobile Guidance in 2013 – among them use of Precise Location Data and Personal Directory Data for marketing, and Cross-Device Guidance in 2015. We reported...

This past month, the Digital Advertising Alliance undertook a fresh initiative to connect with online and mobile consumers about responsible data collection for advertising purposes, the benefits of relevance, and how they can control their interest-based advertising experiences.  With industry support, this consumer education push will run throughout 2016.

As part of this effort, DAA:

• Re-launched our consumer site, youradchoices.com – which is now also mobile-optimized;
• Crafted new creative mobile and digital display ads to let consumers know “YourAdChoices Gives You Control” – a still from which is featured here;

• Received donated impression inventory from an initial “Who’s Who” list of companies in support of this education effort – AOL, AppNexus, Criteo, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn and RocketFuel – throughout 2016.We expect more companies to join this effort over the coming months.

We are grateful to all companies that can help support DAA’s Consumer Education Principle so fervently, by donating impressions to support DAA – and the...