So what do consumers really want from online advertising? Do they care about being tracked, anyway? Those are a couple of the questions addressed in a panel looking at online privacy. Based on
research done at Ball State's Center for Media Design, Michelle Prieb said people's attitudes about data collected about them online is situational but that they would rather have advertising that's
more targeted and tailored to their interests or preferences. There's isn't as much concern about being tracked in itself as to what happens to data collected about them. For that reason, Prieb
suggested its incumbent on advertisers to be as transparent as possible about how someone's information is used.
Prof. Joseph Turow of the Annenberg School at UPenn added that based on its own
research in the last five years, about half of online users say they don't want targeted advertising. And the other half--open to tailored advertising--wound up not wanting after learning it would
potentially involve online and offline tracking, including in supermarkets. "So there's really a strong sense of not wanting to have companies tracking you," he said.
Sal Tripi, sr. director
of operations and compliance for Publishers Clearing House, said the findings show that people don't trust Web site operators. He suggested the only way to build trust is for the industry to set
standards and adhere to them and refuse to do business with other companies that don't. In that vein, he welcomed self-regulatory approaches like that promulgated by the Better Business Bureau. Prieb
said poeple want enforcement, but aren't sure whether legislation or self-regulation is the better approach. "They don't really know what solution is, they just know they want to see standards" which
companies are held accountable to.