Media activist calls for regulating mobile marketing
May 8, 2008
Jeff Chester is executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy
WASHINGTON – Jeff Chester runs the Center for Digital Democracy and he’s out to raise a stink on the practices in the mobile marketing industry. Many online marketers are already familiar with this rhetoric.
Mr. Chester’s nonprofit and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group plan to amend their 2006 complaint to the Federal Trade Commission on interactive marketing techniques and the supposed threats to consumer privacy. He will add mobile marketing techniques to that complaint, particularly taking issue with the migration of online practices such as profiling and behavioral targeting to the mobile Web.
Mr. Chester said his November 2006 complaint led directly to the FTC’s inquiry into online advertising and privacy. The federal agency last December released a proposed set of consumer protection principles for online marketing. Mr. Chester announced his concerns over mobile marketing practices at the FTC’s “Beyond Voice: Mapping the Mobile Marketplace” event in the agency’s offices. Mobile Marketer’s Mickey Alam Khan sat down with Washington-based Mr. Chester to discuss his take on mobile marketing.
What’s your beef with mobile marketing?
A number of mobile marketers are embracing many of the techniques which have raised concerns with the PC Web environment.
We see companies claiming they are engaging in behavioral profiling, tracking users and micro-targeting. Of course, this time location is added into the mix.
The other thing is that it’s clear from the recent MMA [Mobile Marketing Association] guidelines that mobile marketing is in the process of finalizing standards and business practices. We don’t think that consumer interests – real people – have been figured into the design of this model.
Can you name any specific instance that troubles you?
We have identified a number of companies and practices which raise concerns about user privacy and user protection.
The FTC is unaware of these industry practices. There’s a disconnect between what is really going on in the industry and the knowledge that the FTC has about the market.
Just as the 2006 and 2007 complaints helped the FTC to better understand behavioral targeting and marketing online, we hope our amended complaint on mobile marketing will spur agency action.
What are you asking the FTC to do?
I think the Commission needs to review these practices to understand whether or not they are fair to consumers, including youth.
What would you propose as a solution?
I think it has to be a multi-faceted solution. Leaders of the mobile advertising industry should proactively reach out to consumer, privacy, civil rights and youth-focused groups to seriously address how to better structure the mobile marketing ecosystem.
The Commission needs to propose principles and rules to govern mobile marketing and the Congress needs to hold oversight hearings and enact the necessary legislation.
Realistically, what’s the chance of that happening?
Realistically, I think the FTC and the industry needed a wakeup call about these new disturbing practices.
We think that consumer groups will pay more attention to mobile marketing and that the more responsible groups in mobile marketing will work with consumer groups to address these problems.