Bell defends targeted ad program as ‘transparent’

BCE Inc.’s chief legal and regulatory officer told a Senate hearing on Wednesday night that his company’s targeted advertising program respects Canada’s current privacy laws. Mirko Bibic repeatedly compared his company to Facebook Inc. and Google Inc., which he said have access to richer and more personal data than Bell, and said his company needs the targeted advertising program to compete with those “global players.” “We are by no means the first to launch initiatives designed to deliver more relevant ads,” he said. “Formidable global competitors are doing it right now the world over, including in Canada. They have billion of users and, unlike us, even rely on sensitive information.” Bibic cited the interim privacy commissioner’s testimony in front of the same transport and communications committee on Tuesday, in which she said opt-out measures, such as Bell has, are acceptable if the information collected is not sensitive. “She highlighted that balance that takes place between, on the one hand, respect for privacy, which is very important, and, on the other hand, business needs and innovation,” he said. The five million users enrolled in the targeted advertising program do not see additional ads, but Bell acts as a middleman to replace the current ads with ones targeted to the users, said William Abbott, Bell’s privacy ombudsman. “Whether you’re in the program or not, you’re going to get the same number of ads,” he told the committee. “There won’t be black squares on the Internet.” Bell’s targeted advertising program applies only to Bell Mobility and Virgin Mobile subscribers “at this stage,” Bibic said. “For users, the ad is more relevant to them and they may become aware of a promotional discount, which would be of benefit to them,” he said. “There’s of course value to the advertiser, because there’s an enhanced ability to more effectively reach a target market. And for Bell Mobility, we improve our ability to monetize our network platform.” Bibic highlighted Bell’s attempts to notify its customers about the targeted advertising, including notifications via text message, email and in users’ monthly bills. Users can opt out at any time, he said. “We are as transparent, and in some cases more transparent, than our competitors,” he said. According to notes Bell provided to senators and the media, the company aggregates data on subscribers’ interests in at least 18 categories, including entertainment, education, careers and sports. Bibic said Bell’s opt-out program does not use sensitive information, such as political affiliation, health information or financial status, to categorize its users and target advertisements. He also noted that the carrier does not allow advertising targeted at children. Phillipe Gauvin, senior counsel at BCE, said the information collected for advertising purposes was secure in part because it is only accessible to Bell. “There is no information released to third parties,” he said. Bibic explained to the Senate committee that Bell’s advertising service sits between the subscriber and the advertisers, sending an encrypted message to tell third-party websites when a user who matches an advertising profile is visiting. “The website never receives any personal information from Bell to make this happen,” he said. The Senate hearing comes after Bell said in October 2013 that the company will begin tracking its subscribers’ Internet and TV-viewing habits, as well as their mobile calling patterns and mobile application use, to help advertisers better target consumers. In January, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre and the Consumers’ Association of Canada (PIAC) filed a challenge against Bell’s tracking policy with the CRTC. In March, Bell responded to the challenge, saying that its targeted advertising program does not violate the Telecommunications Act, and organizations such as Googleand Facebook have more access to personal information that Bell does. PIAC said in a subsequent filing that such comparisons were absurd given that social networks do not provide telecommunications services and “do not have access to the very sensitive, very detailed information that Bell has.” — With reporting by Peter Henderson at phenderson@thewirereport.ca and editing by Derek Abma at dabma@thewirereport.ca

Bell defends targeted ad program as ‘transparent’

Broadcast | May 1, 2014

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Bell defends targeted ad program as ‘transparent’

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