The Swedish media industry launches campaign to give consumers greater control over tailored online advertising
Brussels, 24 July 2014: – Representatives from across the media industry are launching together the Swedish version of a pan-European campaign to raise consumer awareness of tailored online advertising.
The initiative aims to drive consumer awareness and provide information on how consumers can make an active choice about online “interest-based” or “behavioural” advertising.
Some of Sweden’s largest media owners and advertising tech businesses have donated ad inventory (e.g. Aftonbladet, Expressen and Nyheter24). Sweden are the fifth market in Europe (after the UK, Germany, Ireland and Greece) to launch this campaign (starting on Monday, October 6th). The campaign will run for six to eight weeks with the objective of delivering more than 15 million total impressions and aiming to reach at least 40% of all internet users.
Behind the Swedish campaign, among others, are the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), Sweden and Swedish Advertisers Association. Both publishers and media agencies along with other representatives are also included in the large number of stakeholders behind the campaign.
The overall Pan-European campaign has been masterminded, developed and funded by the EDAA (European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance). The ad campaign, designed in partnership with Mediacom’s Beyond Advertising division, features various creative concepts including statements such as ‘How do websites know which ads will suit your interests?” and “Find out what is happening behind the ads you see on the internet”. The ads also include a zip which opens to reveal the blue triangular ‘AdChoices’ icon that has accompanied online behavioural ads in Sweden and across the EU for the last few years.
On clicking the ads, users are taken to a landing page explaining the role of online advertising, how this funds online content and services that consumers enjoy, and how you can exercise meaningful choice and control over your online advertising preferences. Consumers may also watch a video, which provides a user-friendly description of ‘interest-based advertising’.
Subsequently, users can also click through to a broader website which provides detailed information on how data is collected and used to serve these ads along with the choices available to consumers.
The ‘AdChoices’ icon is an integral part of the pan-European OBA self-regulatory initiative led by the EDAA and supported by the European Commission, IAB Europe, EASA, EACA and various other organisations acting on behalf of the advertising industry.
Charlotte Thur, CEO of IAB Sweden says: “There are two key points people should be aware of. Firstly helps advertising to pay for content and services consumers get for little or no cost, and interest-based ads are more relevant to the user’s probable interests. The second is that, interest-based advertising is not based on any personal information that identifies a user, but is based on the places previously visited by the user. The research is very clear: when consumers are aware of these issues and know that they are in control, they are much more open to interest-based ads.”
Anders Ericson, CEO of Swedish Advertisers, says: “Self-regulation has historically proven to be the best performing option markets in major changes. We in Sweden has been a pioneer at self-regulation and with this initiative, we will remain in the forefront. ”
Oliver Gray, Director General of the EDAA commented, “the launch of the self-regulatory system for OBA in Sweden and running of the consumer awareness campaign is a significant step for the SR Programme. Sweden will become the first Scandinavian country to run the campaign”.
Anders Forssten, Marketing Manager SEQR “It is important that we encourage advertisers and require third-party vendors and publishers, so they are careful with the label” Anno selection “in Sweden. The icon looks the same across Europe and the United States, making it an emerging global standard. ”
RO (Advertising Ombudsman), as a member of EASA and in accordance with the terms of the EASA Best Practice Recommendation on OBA, handles consumer complaints about interest-based online advertising. RO administers a set of OBA-specific rules, available here. Companies practicing OBA in Sweden should be aware of these rules, and importantly, should ensure that they participate in the EU Self-Regulatory Programme on OBA (see: www.edaa.eu)
Notes for Editors:
The following companies are supporting the OBA campaign either via donated ad inventory or technology platforms: Group M, Xcense, Adobe, Admeta, Aller, P&G, Rubicon, Zanox, Delta Projects, Nugg.ad, Sociomantic, Omnicom, Quisma, Netbooster, Schibsted, Talentum, Xaxis, AOL/Adtech.
ENDS
MEDIA CONTACT
For more information, please contact: info@edaa.eu
T: +32 (0)2 513 7806
ABOUT EDAA
The European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance 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 youronlinechoices.eu online consumer choice platform. 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.
More information can be found at www.edaa.eu.
ABOUT THE IAB
IAB Interactive Advertising Bureau, founded in 1996 in New York and has since become established in over 40 countries worldwide. IAB is the leading global organization for online marketing, IAB Sweden is a branch of IAB Europe. The organization works with research, legal support, and developing different guidelines for digital marketing. IAB Europe was established in 1998 and acts as the central organization of the national European organizations. The organization representing some of the industry’s largest players to member companies, such as Google, GroupM, McDonald’s, MTG, Bonnier, Schibsted and Microsoft. IAB Sweden formed in 2008 to raise the country’s stakeholders in digital marketing and has been in the current situation about 130 member companies.
IAB operates through specialized committees (Task Force) working standards and “best practice”.
A very important task of the IAB is to protected the industry from unnecessary and poorly substantiated legislation that would limit the growth of online advertising. IAB is the industry’s main representative to the European Parliament and Commission in Brussels.
ABOUT SWEDISH ADVERTISERS
Swedish Advertisers members account for half of the global advertising and media investments in the country. As interest organization and market manager’s best friend, we help advertisers to work more effectively with advertising, media and their brand. Swedish Advertisers have been around since 1924 and is the world’s largest advertisers organization with over 500 member companies. Read more at www.annons.se
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 “Unzipped” campaign has been designed by Mediacom Beyond Advertising and was based around a concept initially developed by a team of students from KH Leuven in Belgium (finalists in the 2012 Ad Venture student competition run by the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA)).
ABOUT THE EUROPEAN PRINCIPLES FOR ONLINE BEHAVIOURAL ADVERTISING (OBA)
The Self Regulatory Principles for Online Behavioural Advertising have been developed through a cross-industry effort at European level, with EASA’s (European Advertising Standards Alliance) Best Practice Recommendation on OBA building on the IAB Europe (Interactive Advertising Bureau Europe) OBA Framework.
An essential role regarding compliance with these Principles is played by the national Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs) and IABs. Companies should be aware of the national SROs where they operate. More information, including contact details of SROs can be found on EASA’s website: www.easa-alliance.org.
