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DAA app, Web page ease control of mobile ad views


The tools ? AppChoices and Consumer Choice Page for Mobile Web ? offer a transparency and control experience to mobile users, compatible with the DAA's tools offered on desktop. The launch comes as more Americans demand tools that provide them transparency and choice regarding relevant ads and data collection when they use the Internet, especially on smartphones and tablets.

?In recent consumer polling, more than seven in 10 Americans have agreed that tools that provide them transparency and choice regarding relevant ads and data collection should be available wherever and however they access the Internet,? said Lou Mastria, executive director of the DAA, a New York-based consortium of advertising and marketing trade groups.

?In the same poll (conducted by Zogby last fall), nearly two-thirds said they want similar protections and controls for advertising-related data collection such as opt-out choices and independent enforcement, among others on their smartphones and tablets as are currently available on desktop and laptop computers,? he said.

Privacy policy
To get AppChoices, a mobile user visits either the App Store, Google Play or Amazon, and searches for "AppChoices." He or she also may visit www.aboutads.info/appchoices to click to any of the store fronts.  

Upon locating AppChoices, the user will see the DAA icon indicating the app. After installing the free app, the names of the 18 companies participating in AppChoices will be visible as it launches.  

Offering transparency, control to mobile users.

IOS users will see the list of "DAA Company" and "Choice Status" and a green toggle indicating each company's setting showing whether cross-app data collection is enabled.  
Those users may click on any individual company name to learn more about the company and to inspect the privacy policy of each. 

They may go back to the main screen to toggle the green button to its "off" setting to express an opt-out preference ? either individually for a particular company, or by choosing all companies.
 
Android users have a similar experience, except they will see an "On" default indicator and then an "Off" indicator when the opt-out choice is submitted.

Users of the Consumer Choice Page for Mobile Web just point the mobile browser to the existing Consumer Choice Page URL, www.aboutads.info/choices, to get a listing of all DAA Consumer Choice Page participating companies (123 currently) with a "DAA Company" and "Choice Status" indicator regarding multi-site data collection across the Mobile Web. The same opt-out functionality as in AppChoices happens here.

Transparency and choice in the serving of mobile ads has become a higher-profile issue as the number of apps and mobile-optimized Web sites surge. 

In October, a survey conducted by Zogby and commissioned by the DAA found that Americans continued to prefer free, ad-supported mobile applications to those that cost money.

Of respondents in the DAA?s survey of 1,015 United States adults who downloaded apps, 58 percent preferred free, ad-supported apps to those that required some form of payment, either at download or in-app, the survey found. 

Building participation
In April, in a potentially big step toward providing a more consistent privacy experience for consumers on mobile, the DAA issued guidelines for how to display its icon on mobile platforms.


Meeting demand for data-collection protection.

The new creative guidelines followed the DAA?s announcement of how marketers could implement the organization?s self-regulatory principles in mobile environments.

?The 18 companies participating in AppChoices is just a start,? Mr. Mastria said. ?While cross-app data collection and use is early in its use by advertisers, we will be building the list of participating companies over time much as we did for the DAA Consumer Choice Page.?

Final Take
Michael Barris is staff reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York