DAA Blog

It’s been a little over a month since the Digital Advertising Alliance announced the adaptation of DAA Principles for transparency and accountability to online political advertising, specifically for candidate “express advocacy” ads.  In that time, we published a consumer-facing Web site, and we’re about to embark on a working group to devise creative specifications for the display of the PoliticalAd icon  and corresponding ad marker.

During DAA Summit18 ADapt!, we had our first opportunity to discuss publicly with program participants this important application of DAA Principles during a panel discussion moderated by Dick O’Brien, executive vice president, government relations, 4A’s.

DAA Summit18 panel identifies how AboutPoliticalAds program will be implemented. Left to right:  Dick O’Brien, Executive Vice President, Government Relations, 4A’s (...

“In many ways, it feels like we’re at a data ethics tipping point in respect to the public’s trust,” said Elizabeth Denham, information commissioner of the United Kingdom’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). She was featured in a video address during the DAA Summit18’s keynote policy conversation titled, “A Worldwide Marketplace for Digital Advertising Data | A Middle Road for Trade?”

Denham recognized that digital advertising funds content and services on the web relied upon by consumers, but also she noted that marketers, and regulators, have to address continued public privacy and security concerns. “It can be difficult for consumers to understand what data is being collected, who it’s being shared with, the implications this may have, and how the technology used in the digital advertising industry works,” she said.

She then clarified, “the ICO does not regulate online advertising itself; however, we do regulate data protection. So, wherever personal data is collected, measured or shared, including for advertising purposes, we have a role to play.”

Photo: Elizabeth Denham, Information Commissioner, Information Commissioner’s Office - U.K. addressing Summit18 attendees via...

The following contributed op-ed authored by DAA Executive Director Lou Mastria appeared on MediaPost on May 11, 2018, in response to a Media Daily News story earlier this month:  "Study Finds Few Americans Choose Ad Choices, Know It Exists" 

With apologies to many of my former colleagues in journalism, a headline in last week’s Media Daily News brought to mind Adlai Stevenson's definition of an editor as "one who separates the wheat from the chaff, then prints the chaff."

The survey featured in the article showed strong public awareness and adoption of the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) AdChoices program, a proverbial bumper crop of positive data, yet the headline — "Study Finds Few Americans Choose Ad Choices, Know It Exists"  — was mostly chaff.

(AdChoices gives consumers information about and control over interest-based advertising.)

So why do I think the story missed the mark? Let's dive into the details:

• The survey, conducted by Research Intelligencer, asked 400 consumers about their awareness of six tools to control their digital ad experience, including offerings from...

Our April 5 Webinar is for brands and publishers – both business-to-business and consumer – as well as agencies and ad tech companies with their own apps and sites, or which design and support the sites and apps of others.

With the success of “digitally native vertical brands,” and the updating of sites and apps to improve user experiences, website and app owners are increasingly incorporating data gathering into their web and mobile strategies. Technologies such as software development kits (SDKs), cookies and other similar tools continue to be used to better engage consumers. But even as the nimble world of digital marketing embraces new trends, brands need to make sure that their advertising practices are in step with their privacy responsibilities. Innovative techniques should be coupled with adherence to the industry-standard Digital Advertising Alliance Principles, which establish enhanced transparency (outside of the privacy policy) and consumer control for IBA. Under these standards, site and app publishers must be certain that any integration...

While we may be a startup in spirit, we’ve achieved mature reach as our program has helped advertising organizations adapt to new technologies, evolving policy concerns, and ever-higher expectations of consumers.

We’re proud of those accomplishments, which were made possible by the support of our founding associations and the participation of so many hundreds of companies and thousands of brands.

In no particular order, here are at least nine ways our program made a positive difference in 2017 and continues to enable innovative and responsible digital advertising practices as we enter 2018.

1. Continued Recognition by Policymakers and Regulators

We seek to educate both policymakers and regulators on the flexibility and effectiveness that self-regulation can bring to responsible data collection for interest-based advertising purposes. In 2017, for the first time ever, we had a sitting U.S. Senator – Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) – speak to our annual DAA Summit, providing words of encouragement and support for our program and its dual goals of extending privacy protections to consumers, while enabling advertising to finance digital and mobile content and services.

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