• by Ray Schultz , Columnist, February 23, 2025

New rules proposed by the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) would  harm publishers and consumers alike, the News/Media Alliance argues. 

The suggested changes would “deny consumers certain benefits, such as content personalization and subscription deals, without mitigating any risk of harm,” the Alliance writes in comments submitted last week. 

For instance, the proposal would expand the definition of “automated decision-making technology” to exclude it from use by digital businesses in a manner that would benefit consumers.  

It would also redefine behavioral advertising and reclassify it under the heading of “extensive profiling.”

The result is that readers “could lose access to services they expect and appreciate, including content personalization, subscription offers, and advertising tailored to their interests, including advertising informed by their activity on publishers’ sites,” the Alliance states. 

In addition, the proposal would effectively outlaw first party advertising by news publishers, by “giving consumers the ability to opt out of algorithmically targeted advertising,” it adds.

As marketers well know, consumers want it both ways: they demand personalization, but are wary of the tools needed to achieve it.  

The CPPA’s overbroad proposal “far exceeds the scope of opt-out rights in the CPPA,” the Alliance argues. It also contradicts “longstanding principles set forth by the FTC  and the laws of every other state.” 

The Alliance urges the CPPA to revise the proposal to “protect the vital role of news publishers in providing reliable information to consumers for free or low cost, and supporting California’s economy.”