DAA Blog

Data is indeed dynamic.  Innovations in ad tech and changes in consumer behavior continue apace – based on all the reports we’re seeing.  All the while, one truth appears to remain:  brands and publishers continue to invest in interest-based, data-driven advertising and marketing as part of a toolset to engage consumers with relevance and convenience.

The Digital Advertising Alliance Principles and program supports such trends – because without responsible data collection, “smarter,” more relevant advertising content simply could not be achieved at the magnitude that is happening today.  The DAA empowers valuable content and ad creation by offering a suite of tools (Consumer Choice Page for Desktop & Mobile, AppChoices and AppChoices en Español) which connect marketers and consumers wherever they meet today. These tools, and the ubiquitous YourAdChoices Icon, enable consumers to learn about responsible data collection and use practices as well as empowering them with easy-to-use, widely deployed choice tools. These are all ways in which we show respect for the consumer while increasing competition, enhancing the ad-funded Internet and supporting economic growth.

Consider the recently announced Value of Data study, and a recent “...

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...

In our attention economy - where marketers compete for the attention of consumers - I'm struck how data collection for interest-based advertising (IBA) enables support for a wide range of small publishers and niche content providers, some of whom derive most or all of their income from ad network-supplied IBA. Without IBA, much less advertising in general, these entities could not survive.

Among all the parts of our advertising ecosystem we honor and recognize during Advertising Week 2015, I'd like to toast these startups and small businesses which are thankfully among us.

The "long tail" of companies on the Internet, and the impact they have on both competition in the marketplace and the diversity of user content they create, cannot be discounted or ignored. Were the long tail to be undermined economically, it would be a travesty for small business and consumers alike. Who would help you with BBQ recipes, or travel deals, or DIY projects, or the copious amount of bicycling research I like to do - just to think of some of niche content sites I use?

Why IBA is so vital to small publishers is precisely because of the niche content many of these publishers provide: these sites could never command attention to sell ads directly to brands, yet much of their content is so specific to one subject matter or another, they deliver to brands a highly qualified audience of engaged users. Ads are seen on these thousands of sites - and because of responsible...

[Photo: Peter Kosmala, senior vice president of government relations at 4A's (standing) introduces the DAA Summit 2015 panel, "Cross Border: How the DAA Programs Matter to Global Advertisers." Seated left to right: Julie Ford, executive director Digital Advertising Alliance of Canada; Jeanette Fitzgerald, chief privacy officer at Epsilon; and Chris Payne, public affairs manager at the World Federation of Advertisers and board member of the European Digital Interactive Advertising Alliance.] Big Idea: Amid an ever-expanding global environment, responsible online data collection is taking hold abroad. Representatives of DAA sister programs in Europe and Canada and a global ad company discuss the approaches to self-regulation in international markets. The final panel at DAA Summit 2015, held in June in New York, featured the Digital Advertising Alliance programs in Europe and Canada, as well as the perspective of a global agency and data services provider, who discussed the importance of the DAA program and Principles, and what responsible data collection means for global stakeholders and advertisers. Peter Kosmala, senior vice president of government relations at 4A's, began the panel by discussing the well-established DAA affiliated programs in Canada and Europe and how they provide a more global perspective for responsible data collection, interest-based ads and...

As of today (September 1, 2015), companies which collect and use data across mobile sites or mobile apps for interest-based advertising purposes will be required to demonstrate compliance with the Digital Advertising Alliance Principles as they relate to mobile activity. Importantly, the DAA Principles also include obligations for accessing and using precise location data and personal directory data (such as directories, contacts, photos, etc.).

The announcement of the start of independent accountability in mobile is an important milestone for DAA -- our two enforcement partners Council of Better Business Bureaus and Direct Marketing Association -- and for all of our trade association partners who have helped support self-regulation.

It is important because it continues the drumbeat of DAA delivering on our industry's ecosystem-wide promises for easy-to-find, easy-to-use consumer privacy controls.

It is important because it demonstrates a commitment to meaningful, independent accountability.

It is important because it helps preserve the promise of convenient and relevant mobile engagement between brands and consumers.

It is important because we've demonstrated time and again that nimble self-regulation is the appropriate answer for a dynamic advertising ecosystem.

As you can see, I believe this is ... well, important.

Included here are links to resources that may be helpful to you in your DAA Mobile Guidance plan of...