16th June 2010, Dubai
Global survey shows that 3 in 4 UAE Internet users are concerned about their Internet privacy and prefer advertising based upon what they do online rather than who they are.

New research from Real Opinions shows that 60% of UAE Internet users favour behavioural targeting for customised advertising and Internet content, whilst 76% said their searches for products and visits to websites should never be monitored unless they have given express permission to do so beforehand.

Dan Healy, the CEO of Real Opinions said “One of the key opportunities for Internet advertisers is to efficiently target their key audience. Our research shows that customers want more sophistication from advertisers in reaching out to them by better understanding what they are looking for online rather than who they are. Take the example of buying an annual holiday. You might only do this once a year but when you do you’d like to see all the deals on offer and not at any other time during the year. This is the key moment for advertisers, it’s the here and now period when customers are making an evaluation and possibly a transaction online right away."

The survey clearly shows that consumers are increasingly attracted to the convenience and relevance that behavioural targeting brings to online content but also have concerns regarding the ways in which data collected about their online habits is being collected. Privacy concerns have resulted in fierce debate in Europe and North America where new legislation is being discussed to protect online privacy and recent communications from both Google and Facebook regarding privacy of Internet users has attracted a great deal of media attention. In particular, Adobe has been addressing concerns about the practice of some organisations using Flash cookies to regenerate HTML cookies (Internet history) that may have been intentionally deleted by Internet users.

UAE based Internet users were surveyed as part of the global 11-country Here & Now study by Real Opinions which sought to ask Internet users for their opinions on the debate of Internet advertising, privacy concerns and preferences.

Of all the global respondents surveyed, the story was similar with 65% saying they prefer to give express permission before searches and visits to websites are monitored. This was particularly so with concern respondents in UAE (76%), South Africa (77%) and Australia (91%) respondents.

"Behavioural advertising promises to help advertisers reach the right consumer with the right message at the right time by gathering data on individuals Internet habits," said Carrington Malin, managing director of Spot On Public Relations. "The overall concept is a win-win for advertiser and consumer, providing more effective channels for advertisers and more relevant advertising and content for consumers. However, new behavioural advertising techniques require more monitoring of consumers usage patterns and raise some very real privacy concerns that have become the subject of widespread debate."

The Here & Now survey also found that there are some Internet users that do not accept any trade off between privacy levels and behavioural targeting. When asked about the different options for websites to secure permission for monitoring, 38% of respondents believed that no tracking or monitoring of their online behaviour should be permitted under any circumstances. However, almost 6 in 10 (59% globally and also in the UAE) most preferred the method suggested of a setting in Internet browsers which allows Internet users to set global default levels of privacy rather than on a per website basis. Of note, this was most preferred option by almost 3 in 4 respondents (74%) in India and 67% in China.

“There has been a significant volume of media coverage regarding online privacy and this is an issue that many people have a growing awareness of,” said Healy. “People have learned to become more wary and want more control put in their own hands about what they do and do not share rather than rely on third parties to regulate their levels of privacy.”

Another outcome of the survey was that people were more negative generally about promotions that targeted mobile phones, with 51% of people surveyed in the UAE being against SMS advertising

Research Methodology
The Here & Now survey was conducted online in:

UAE
Thailand
Indonesia
India
China
Hong Kong
Singapore
Australia
Turkey
South Africa
Jordan

Research was conducted from approximately 27th February to 7th March 2010. Respondents were given the choice to complete the survey in either English or their local language. 1,535 respondents overall took part in the survey.


Key Questions:
Q. Generally speaking, please rate how appealing or unappealing you think the following forms of digital advertising / marketing would be if you saw or received them?

Q. Which of the following levels of Internet usage privacy would you prefer to have in order to allow reputable advertisers on participating websites to better target you with more relevant advertising online?

Q. Please select how strongly you agree between the two statements about your usage of the Internet.


Reported In Media:
Info Tech
Arabian Business
AME Info
Zawya
Spot On Public Relations

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai and London, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide communication, insight and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information about us and this study, please visit www.real-opinions.com

Contact Real Opinions for more information:
inquiry@real-opinions.com

About Spot On Public Relations
Spot On Public Relations is an integrated communications firm that helps organisations position, communicate and differentiate themselves online and offline. With a 15-year track record of managing communications for international companies, government departments and NGOs in the Middle East, Spot On offers strong strategic counsel and relevant local experience. The firm offers a broad range of services including event management, media relations, social media marketing, marketing communications, online communications, public affairs and strategic communications planning.

Spot On Public Relations is the Middle East network partner of Brodeur Partners and a founder member of the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA).

Press contact
Alexander McNabb | @alexandermcnabb | alexm@spotonpr.com |

4th June 2009, Australia
Web measurement firm Effective Measure claims ‘new benchmark’ in online privacy.

Earlier this week, web audience measurement firm Effective Measure claimed to be setting “a new benchmark in visitor privacy” with a system that would allow consumers to permanently opt out of having their online activity tracked.

The issue of online privacy is drawing the attention of legislators around the globe, and a heavy-handed regulatory response poses a potentially serious threat to the work of the MR industry.

With that in mind, Research contacted Effective Measure’s chief privacy officer Roger Kermode to find out more about the company’s new solution and gauge his views on where the privacy debate is heading.

Could you start by explaining how Effective Measure produces its audience measurement data? Is it a cookie-based measure?

Effective Measure produces its audience measurement data via the use of patent-pending DigitalHelix technology. DigitalHelix incorporates a number of methods, including cookies, to track and aggregate media consumption across multiple sites, browsers, and devices. The technology is designed to cope with the deletion of cookies and in so doing provide accurate counts of the number of visitors to a site.

It also allows Effective Measure to offer an integrated survey functionality that allows anonymised and aggregated responses given by users who opt in to answer questions on one site to be shared with another site. This allows audience demographic data to be compiled and shared across the sites within a market based on what people are willing to share.

Should they decide not to participate in a survey or not answer a specific survey question that is their choice. All traffic data collected by Effective Measure is anonymised and aggregated so that it is not possible to identify individual users.

Other methods based solely on cookies suffer from a couple of problems, the most serious one being that they generate inaccurate data regarding site traffic when users delete cookies. While the number of page views is roughly accurate, the number of visitors can be significantly over-counted since deleted cookies result in new visitor IDs when a user returns.

How does your new opt-out system differ from the existing one?

Our previous opt-out system followed the industry practice of setting a cookie to enable opt-out. Our new system builds on this by leveraging the persistence afforded by DigitalHelix to ensure that any potential tracking data from a visitor that has been opted out is discarded and not included in the measurement stats.

Opt-out methods based solely on third-party cookies create a potential privacy issue. A user who deletes cookies after visiting a site, and then visits a site again, will have a new cookie created and be tracked again under the new identifier. This creates a problem for both users and for advertisers, since the user isn't opted out on a permanent basis, and the traffic numbers generated by the cookie-only verification service include duplicated user data.

What was the catalyst for introducing such a system? Was it a response to the outcry there has been around ISP-based behavioural monitoring and ad targeting?

Effective Measure doesn’t participate in behavioural ad targeting in any form, we simply measure the size of website audiences, and provide opt-in site demographics. We decided that it was appropriate to proactively lead the discussion on user privacy in the audience measurement space.

You bill the new opt-out system as a new benchmark in visitor privacy – yet law makers, specifically in the US and Europe, seem to be pushing heavily for opt-in when it comes to behavioural tracking. Would this be workable in a research context?

Our survey function is completely opt-in by design since it allows users to answer all, none or some of the questions presented. All demographic data we collect and manage on behalf of our clients is on an opt-in only basis, the only data we collect on an opt-out basis is de-identified, website usage data.

At the highest level, privacy is something for which users will make personal decisions around how much data they are willing to share. If there is a perceived benefit to be gained then a user can choose to reveal some information to gain that benefit.

We do believe that DigitalHelix sets a new benchmark in visitor privacy. As far as we're aware no other system is able to provide the combination of opt-in demographics with a permanent opt-out without compromising browser operation by permanently disabling cookies altogether.

How do you see the online privacy debate unfolding?

Online privacy has been an important issue since the early days of the internet and is an issue that constantly evolves along with the application of new technologies. We feel that consumers are becoming more and more aware of how their personal data could be used, and are becoming savvier about how they can prevent identifiable data being misused.

We see the debate moving towards responsible self-regulation by industry groups like the Network Advertisers Initiative. In an industry where technology moves quickly, we feel that these kinds of industry-led initiatives, along with proactive user privacy policies, such as persistent opt-outs from responsible companies, are the most effective way to ensure user data is not misused.

Source: Research June 4 2009
www.research-live.com

To register your website for the trial, visit:

http://register.effectivemeasure.com

About Effective Measure
Effective Measure provides cutting edge digital audience measurement, website rankings, Internet demographics and market intelligence for website publishers, agencies and digital marketers.

Effective Measure’s patent-pending Digital Helix methodology overcomes problems with cookie deletion and unique visitor audience calculation. The solution increases visitation, client visibility and advertising revenue by providing independent third-party analytics to publishers and advertisers around the world.

Effective Measure is an associate subscriber of ABC Electronic.

For more information visit www.effectivemeasure.com

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is bringing the 'Effective Measure' solution to the Middle East and beyond. Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai and London, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide communication, insight and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information about us and this study, please visit www.real-opinions.com

Contact Real Opinions for more information:
inquiry@real-opinions.com

2nd June 2009, Dubai
In Australia, digital audience measurement firm Effective Measure has announced plans to roll out a new visitor opt-out mechanism, which it says promises a ‘new benchmark’ in visitor privacy.

The initiative will comply with EU and US privacy principles, while enabling the millions of anonymous users the firm measures to permanently opt out of its research.
Effective Measure uses its patent-pending Digital Helix system to solve the issue of over-calculation of unique web site visitors caused by visitors deleting their cookies. A recent survey conducted by the firm showed that more than 60% of users delete these cookies at least monthly, leading some web sites to significantly overestimate their unique visitor figures.

‘One of the real challenges with current online audience measurement opt-out mechanisms is that users who knowingly or unknowingly delete their cookies are subsequently opted back in and measured again,’ Chief Privacy Officer Dr Roger Kermode explained. ‘Effective Measure will allow anonymous users to permanently opt-out of being measured through our Digital Helix methodology.’

Scheduled for release later this month, the opt-out mechanism has been designed to enhance and extend the existing system currently available on the firm’s web site.

‘We know that our customers expect increased accuracy of online measurement information, but they also want assurances that we are focused on protecting the privacy of the anonymous users we are measuring on their behalf,’ added CEO Scott Julian.

Source: MRWEB June 2 2009
http://www.mrweb.com/drno/news10046.htm

To register your website for the trial, visit:

http://register.effectivemeasure.com

About Effective Measure
Effective Measure provides cutting edge digital audience measurement, website rankings, Internet demographics and market intelligence for website publishers, agencies and digital marketers.

Effective Measure’s patent-pending Digital Helix methodology overcomes problems with cookie deletion and unique visitor audience calculation. The solution increases visitation, client visibility and advertising revenue by providing independent third-party analytics to publishers and advertisers around the world.

Effective Measure is an associate subscriber of ABC Electronic.

For more information visit www.effectivemeasure.com

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is bringing the 'Effective Measure' solution to the Middle East and beyond. Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai and London, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide communication, insight and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information about us and this study, please visit www.real-opinions.com

Contact Real Opinions for more information:
inquiry@real-opinions.com