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FEDMA speaks at European Parliament Data Protection and the Internet Hearing

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The European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) held a public hearing on data protection on the internet at which FEDMA spoke on 21 January...
2008-01-25
The European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) held a public hearing on data protection on the internet at which FEDMA spoke on 21 January.
The open hearing was held to discuss the notion of ‘personal data’ in the online environment and in particular the potential effects of the planned Google/DoubleClick merger. In the first session, which concentrated on the concept of personal data, Alexander Singewald, a prominent Data Protection lawyer and FEDMA’s Treasurer, spoke on behalf of FEDMA. He pointed out that FEDMA and its national members have worked closely with the national Data Protection Authorities (DPAs) since the EU Data Protection Directive was adopted in 1995; and that FEDMA negotiated a code of practice for the use of personal data in Direct Marketing at the European level with the grouping of national Data Protection Authorities of the member states (the so-called Article 29 Working Party). FEDMA is continuing its cooperation with the Article 29 Working Party in developing an additional annex to the Code of Practice, which specifically covers online marketing.
The Hearing was also attended by the US Federal Trade Commissioner, Mrs. Harbour, who said that the FTC had held a similar meeting in November, following which the FTC had come out with draft guidelines on behavioural marketing (http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2007/12/principles.shtm) which it had opened for comments.
The national Data Protection Authorities’ Article 29 Working Party, represented by its Chair, Mr. Peter Schaar, the Federal DPA for Germany, the Spanish DPA, and the person responsible for preparing an opinion on the Internet and data protection, all stated that search engine marketing had to be perused with great care and attention. Both the Google and Microsoft presenters affirmed their companies’ attention to data privacy issues.
“These open hearings from the European Parliament are very useful exchanges for information” said Alastair Tempest Director General at FEDMA. “The European Parliament said that it fully intended to continue the dialogue it has landed”.
FEDMA is the European voice of the direct and interactive marketing sector, with national associations in 29 countries – representing 20 000 companies. Internet advertising should be seen in context of the total market and Internet investment in the European Union is in the region of 7 299€ million. Compared with other media in Europe, the total amounts of advertising investments in the printed press are 46 320€ million; for television 30 736€ million, for radio 5 157€ million, for outdoor 5 813€ million, for cinema 748€ million.
To read FEDMA's position paper, please click here. For more information, please contact Anne Marheim Støren