Scenario 3: Consumer Privacy takes over the Ad world
Consumer Privacy takes over the Ad world
2020 Consumer privacy rights take over the advertising world. There is a consumer rights watch group and policy maker that tracks the way firms use consumer data especially on the web. Each web site has clear indications on the type of data is intends to collect. Just as the green sign on eatables is a sign of vegetarian stuff, each website has symbols that indicates whether there is behavior tracking cookies or 3rd party tools that the website uses. Privacy is a commodity which websites sell. Consumers have the choice to view web content free of cost but after parting with their personal information or consumers can pay a premium for protection of their privacy. Hence, advertising loses its hyper individualization drive. Advertising is hugely outdoors and targeted at a mass market.
2017 There is an intense battle fought between internet firms such as Google, Facebook, Myspace and Bing and consumers over the issue of protecting consumer rights. The industry comes up with a proposal to introduce self regulated principles for online advertising. What it means is that consumers will be allowed to protect their data but it will not be easy for them to do so. In the meantime, Privacy forum research groups take off and there is a global education drive which educates the consumer that advertising firms collect information not only pertaining to you but also pertaining to your family and friends. Internet firms desperately come up with a business model of offering free goodies in return for personal info but it fails to take off. NTT Japan successfully develops the fiber optic cable that pushes 14 trillion bits of bytes per second. This translates to faster and wider internet reach and potentially wider misuse of consumer information.
2014 Open source software does great on the market. Google’s open source operating system spawns a generation of applications that give a lot of value to the consumers. But in this free world, open source gives rise to free access of consumer information. Facebook has a privacy setting set to private for consumers below the age of 18 and the setting is public for consumers above the age of 18. The concept of ‘friending’ in which an entity appears to be a person takes off. Hence consumers below the age of 18 are not protected. The targeted personal advertising industry tries to catch consumers young and it creates a huge backslash in the world. Consumer rights grow in strength demanding stricter legislation and a method to track collection of consumer advertisement.
2010 The internet technology is poised for substantial growth. Internet advertising is touted as the next big thing and the prospect of convergent technologies loom large. The industry is taken aback by the rise of data privacy movements. In 2009, Facebook, Myspace and Xing received warning letters from EU consumer groups for shortcomings on privacy policies. Also, there is a trend for developing stricter policies for controlling behavioral advertising. Although these incidents are on the rise, Internet firms are confident that they will be able to respond adequately.
References: http://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/node/6239 http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/techbeat/archives/2009/09/consumer_groups.html http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=141722987030 http://www.findingdulcinea.com/guides/Technology/Internet/Internet-Marketing-and-Privacy.pg_04.html#04