UKNM: FTC launches investigation into Doubleclick

[Wallace, Darren]

 >From Industry Standard:

http://www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,10588,00.html

<http://www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,10588,00.html> 

  

FTC Casts an Eye on DoubleClick 


  <

keithpthestandard [dot] com (mailto:keithpthestandard [dot] com)

> By Keith Perine


WASHINGTON - DoubleClick

<http://www.thestandard.com/companies/display/0,2063,52626,00.html>  ( DCLK

<http://www.thestandard.com/article/stock/1,2107,,00.html?symb=DCLK> ) , a

leading Internet advertising firm, revealed that the Federal Trade

Commission has launched an informal inquiry into its business practices. 


DoubleClick has come under fire in recent weeks over its "Abacus Online"

service. That service combines Web surfers' electronic data, such as

Internet protocol (IP) addresses, with offline data such as names, postal

addresses, and catalog purchase histories culled from the files of Abacus

Direct, an offline marketing firm DoubleClick bought last year. 


In a Monday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, DoubleClick

also acknowledged that it is the target of several class-action suits

alleging the company unlawfully obtains and sells Internet users' personal

information. 


"We are fully cooperating and we applaud the FTC's efforts to keep the

Internet safe for consumers," said DoubleClick CEO Kevin O'Connor. 


In a statement issued Wednesday, DoubleClick also revealed that it is the

subject of another informal government inquiry, by the New York state

attorney general's office. New York has been in the forefront of state

efforts to guard consumer online privacy. However, a spokeswoman for the

attorney general declined to comment on that investigation. 


The FTC bent its own no-comment rule on such matters by issuing a

noncommittal statement. 


"The Federal Trade Commission staff is conducting a routine inquiry of

DoubleClick to determine whether it has engaged in unfair and deceptive

practices in violation of section five of the Federal Trade Commission Act,"

said Jodie Bernstein, the director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer

Protection. "The company has been cooperating in the inquiry." 


DoubleClick's shares fell almost five points in Wednesday's trading, to

106.50, before the Nasdaq exchange suspended trading at 1:05 p.m. Eastern

time. In after-hours trading on Island ECN, DoubleClick was off 9.94 to 96.5

on 636,000 shares. 


Also on Monday, DoubleClick rolled out a new

<http://www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,10331,00.html> public

relations campaign aimed at damage control of the storm of criticism raining

down on the company. DoubleClick announced a public education effort by way

of full-page ads in national newspapers, and the creation of a new "chief

privacy officer" post at the company, among other measures. The company's

president, Kevin

<http://www.thestandard.com/people/display/0,1157,1232,00.html> Ryan, said

Monday that DoubleClick had created as many as 100,000 profiles on

individual Web surfers using a combination of online and offline data. 


DoubleClick says it will only do business with Web sites with posted privacy

policies. But the company declines to specify just how those policies should

be worded. It also refuses to name which of its clients have signed up for

Abacus Online so far. 


The company's efforts are decried as too little, too late by privacy

advocates, who argue that consumers have a right to explicit notice and

affirmative choice before being swept up in DoubleClick's dragnet. 


Last week, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a

<http://www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,9694,00.html> formal

complaint with the FTC, asking it to investigate DoubleClick for possible

"unfair and deceptive business practices." DoubleClick responded by calling

EPIC's complaint "meritless." But EPIC might have the last laugh. 


"It appears they've reconsidered their position," said Marc

<http://www.thestandard.com/people/display/0,1157,1355,00.html> Rotenberg,

EPIC's executive director. 

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darren wallace  commercial manager

ginger online

darren [dot] wallaceginger [dot] com

 <

darren [dot] wallaceginger [dot] com (mailto:darren [dot] wallaceginger [dot] com)

> 

+44 171 432 3328(t)  +44 171 287 1844(f)

+44 410 780 775(gsm)  www.ginger.com <http://www.ginger.com/> 

1 golden square  london  w1r 4dj  uk

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