The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced that it will consider rules to eliminate “harmful commercial surveillance and lax data security.” Now, the “race to find a reasonably reliable and compliant replacement or proxy signal” for digital advertising is on.
Comments from Steve Dunlop, our CEO, and Paul Kelly, our CRO, were covered in MarTech and The Drum respectively.
Steve Dunlop: Unfettered collection and monetization of user data has allowed the big tech firms to grow unchecked, creating an oligopoly making it very hard for smaller players, many of whom stick to the moral and actual existing rules. We welcome any legislation that makes it a more level playing field for many firms to play, as well as a better and clearer deal for users.
Paul Kelly: ‘Personal information’ is a loaded term, and [planned rulemaking] of this type can have unintended consequences. People don’t want their bank details stolen – but that’s not what advertisers are looking for. They want to know what you buy. Removing that signal will inevitably mean two things: a race to find a reasonably reliable and compliant replacement or proxy signal; and a modest re-balance of advertising investment from lower-funnel ‘buy now’-type campaigns that are prevalent on social to other areas of the funnel (and therefore channels).
