Brussels, 3 July 2013: – The EDAA is pleased to announce the election of Nick Stringer as its new Chairman. Stringer, who was endorsed by IAB Europe’s Board to be the organisation’s representative, is also Vice Chair of IAB Europe’s Policy Committee and Director of Regulatory Affairs at IAB UK. He replaces Alain Heureux, who served as Chairman since EDAA’s inception in April 2012.
Commenting on his appointment, Stringer said:
“As the administrator of the European Self-Regulatory Programme for Online Behavioural Advertising, the EDAA works for the benefit of consumers, and demonstrates the proactive and responsible approach of the entire EU digital advertising sector. I look forward to progressing the EDAA’s work to help businesses deliver transparency and consumer control.”
Stringer takes up his new role at a critical point for the EDAA, which has just kicked off an awareness raising campaign to help European consumers to better understand online behavioural advertising and what it means for them.
ENDS
MEDIA CONTACT
For more information, please contact: info@edaa.eu
T: +32 (0)2 213 4180
ABOUT EDAA
The European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance (www.edaa.eu) is a non-profit organisation based in Brussels and is responsible for enacting key aspects of the self-regulatory initiative for Online Behavioural Advertising (OBA) across Europe. EDAA principally acts as the central licensing body for the OBA Icon and provides technical means for consumers to exercise transparency and control over OBA through the online consumer choice platform at www.youronlinechoices.eu. EDAA is governed by EU-level organisations which make up the value chain of OBA within Europe and acts to ensure European consistency in approach.
ABOUT OBA
Online Behavioural Advertising (OBA), often referred to as interest-based advertising, is the practice of delivering relevant advertising to internet users based upon their inferred interests from previous browsing behaviour over time and across multiple web domains.
OBA EDUCATION ACROSS EUROPE
Primarily, the education campaign will drive awareness of the OBA icon, licensed by the EDAA and placed on online ads, to ensure consumers associate it with meaningful transparency, choice and control over online behavioural advertising.
The OBA icon is a means for consumers to identify where OBA is being practiced in a clear and contextual manner. The icon links consumers to a pan-European consumer choice platform at www.youronlinechoices.eu, which aims to inform and provide choice and control. The website has been revamped alongside the launch of the campaign.
Through the Programme, consumers will better understand online advertising, as well as the means that are available to them if they wish to file complaints. Credible consumer complaint handling mechanisms in each national market will be handled by well-established and recognised national advertising self-regulatory organisations (SROs).
The campaign, which has been designed by Mediacom Beyond Advertising, is based on a concept developed by a team of students at KH Leuven, Belgium, who were finalists in a student competition run by EACA (European Association of Communications Agencies).
ABOUT NICK STRINGER
Nick Stringer has been appointed as the Chairman of the EDAA. Nick brings with him a wealth of industry knowledge and works closely with the Director-General and EDAA staff to cement the EDAA as a successful and responsive actor for European (and global) trust in digital advertising.
Nick is Vice Chair of the IAB Europe (Interactive Advertising Bureau Europe) Policy Committee, the trade association responsible for promoting the growth of the interactive advertising markets in Europe. IAB Europe represents the interests of more than 5000 members including major media groups, advertisers, agencies, portals, technology and service providers. Nick is also Director of Regulatory Affairs at IAB UK, which is a Board Member of IAB Europe.
Nick is a leading figure both in the UK and at EU level working for the optimal policy environment for digital advertising, in particular on privacy issues, and helping to boost the understanding of digital media and its benefits within regulatory and political circles. In his role as Chairman of the EDAA, he will continue to spearhead pan-European efforts to ensure a credible, accountable and responsive system of Self-Regulation for OBA.
