FTC Targeting Use of Cookies

Businessweek has an interesting article about a possible U.S. government (Federal Trade Commission) investigation into the use of cookies in behaviourally targeted advertising. Complaints have been filed with the FTC asking that companies be required to disclose the fact that tracking cookies are being used, and also requiring web surfers to "opt in" for them.

Businessweek: Taking Aim at Targeted Advertising

I think that's a great idea. Personally, I like tracking cookies, and I like targeted advertising. If there are going to be ads on the web pages I'm visiting, I'd like them to be as targeted as possible so that I'm seeing ads for things I'm interested in. But I'd also like to have a bit of control over how and when I'm targeted, and who's getting access to the information being collected about me. That's one of the reasons I got involved in incentivized advertising in the first place.

I suspect there are a lot of other people out there who feel the same way I do. We're happy to let the technology do its thing so that we see more relevant ads, but we also want the option of having our privacy respected. I don't see any reason why we can't have both.