House of Commons questions confirm Government and Select Committee action on behavioural targeting
Select Committee chairman, John Whittingdale, quizzed Culture Minister Ed Vaizey on the need to support consumers and businesses that like targeting during oral questions on 9 Feb.
John Whittingdale (Con MP for Maldon): said that... cookies and targeted
behavioural advertising are of great benefit for both businesses and consumers. He said that ‘a lot of the fear of them is based on ignorance’
Ed Vaizey MP (The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport) replied that ‘When we implemented the e-privacy directive we made sure that we worked closely with business. There is a balance to be struck between implementing the law and ensuring that business still has the freedom to innovate. The e-privacy directive is about transparency. So long as consumers know what is happening to data, they should be comfortable with what is being done with them.’
ISBA Director of Public Affairs, Ian Twinn, commented that the clear understanding from
the Minister and the Select Committee were very helpful, business is committed to transparency and to consumer choice. The website http://www.youronlinechoices.com accessed through the new advertising icon will role out soon. However threat from the EU still appears to be based on fear or an incomplete understanding of how the digital environment works.