• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, July 25, 2012

The online ad industry may need some kind of ratings system for online data, similar to financial products, according to Michael Horn, to establish a certain minimum level of integrity and trustworthiness.  It's an interesting idea, and a little more governance can't hurt -- but it's worth remembering that the financial products that caused the credit bubble and collapse had AAA ratings, and still turned out to be rotten. In other words the ratings are only as good as the rater, and it's possible to game even a vigilant observer.