The Cost of Consumer Privacy

Privacy concerns come in all shapes and sizes, and have been a key element to important dialogues in the tech industry in recent weeks and years. The rise and potential expansion of California’s CCPA kickstarted the 2020 dialogue around consumer privacy in the United States. Even before that, Europe led the movement with the introduction of GDPR. As the adoption of these laws becomes more commonplace, they will continue to shape the policies and procedures of every tech company in some way. A new IAS report explores what digital privacy means to the consumers who are engaged online in 2020, and what it may cost them to attain it.

Online privacy is important to consumers — so much so that they’re willing to take action themselves to restrict data collection online. Users are known to download ad blocker programs, while some browsers offer a “Do Not Track” settings option, and Facebook offers the option to “opt out” of targeted ads. Consumers are also holding brands accountable for the content adjacent to ad placements. However, despite industry concerns, consumers are receptive to ads in the right environments and prefer contextual targeting methods to the traditional data mining efforts of third party websites looking to cash in on available consumer data. We also found that context matters. Privacy legislation and consumer action are accelerating a shift to contextual advertising, and that’s good news for the industry because it’s what consumers prefer.

Conversations around consumer privacy are far from over – if anything, in the U.S., they’re just getting started. Understanding consumer sentiment directly from consumers themselves is more important than ever. Ready to read the full report? Download the research using the form below.