Toward the end of 2017 and the outset of 2018, lots of major digital U.S. companies updated their privacy policies and sent out notifications to their millions of customers. What did all those companies have in common? They were all doing business in the European Union (EU).

Businesses in the EU had to adopt new privacy policies to comply with April 2016’s update to consumer-protection regulations, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Policies regarding internet user privacy hadn’t been updated since 1995, and privacy concerns and practices have changed profoundly since then.

GDPR brings privacy practices into the 21^st century with a surprisingly high standard that will require major investments for large, multinational companies. Those businesses that do business in both the EU and the U.S. are changing standards company-wide to comply, which means users in the U.S. will also likely benefit from those changes.

But exactly how will privacy change, and are all those changes positive? We’ll explore deeper what GDPR means for U.S. citizens.

GDPR’s Most Significant Regulations

A large-scale view of the most pertinent regulations will help internet users in the U.S. discover how the changes will affect them.

Information Protection

Companies are now responsible for carrying out steps that keep consumers well-informed of information-use when attempting to take action with a user’s personal information, including:

• Consent – Requests for consent must be written in an easily accessible form that eliminates legal jargon, and they are now required to make consent withdrawal as easy as accepting terms for consent.
• Breach Notification – Consumers must be notified of data breaches within 72 hours when such a breach risks rights and freedoms of users.
• Right to be Forgotten – Users will have the right to Data Erasure, which allows them to have data controllers erase personal data and cease dissemination of that data.
• Right to Access – Internet users will also have access to whether their information is under process, where it is being process, and for what purpose.

Accountability

Businesses under GDPR will also have to remain accountable for their actions regarding user information, including:

• Penalties – Fines of up to 4% of annual global turnover or 20 million euro may be imposed if flagrant violations of GDPR policy are made.
• Privacy by Design – Privacy protection for users’ personal information must now be built into the design of internal systems.
• Territorial Scope – Any company that does business and collects personal information in the European Union must comply with GDPR regulations.

Rules apply to business that perform transactions with users as well that those that simply collect personal data, also called personally identifiable information (PII) in the U.S.

How U.S. Internet Users Will Be Affected

There is no shortage of internationally-operating companies that are based in the U.S., and some of America’s favorite social media and shopping sites meet the criteria for switching to GDPR. However, even multinational companies aren’t required by U.S. law to comply with European regulations in the U.S. Luckily, it’s in the best interest of those companies to make universal changes to policy that fit into both GDPR and domestic standards, especially since it could cost anywhere from $1 million to $10 million depending on the size of the company.

That’s why so many companies preemptively updated their privacy policies and notified U.S. users at the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018. With a firm due date of May 25, 2018 for implementing changes according to GDPR, most data subjects in the U.S. should know (in easy-to-read terms) how the new privacy policies will change their rights and access to their personal information as well as how those businesses will be handling it.

Keep a look out in your email, and if you’re reading this well ahead of implementation, know that you have a right to review your privacy policy at any time and that most of them are easy to access. Take the time post-GDPR to find out how your information is being used, and stay up-to-date on changes made by companies with whom you do business.

Leverage Marketing respects and protects private information, and we also help companies reach the next level in their business. Ask us how.

Net neutrality has been a buzzword for the last several months as the current Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has sought public opinion and voted to repeal the Obama-era regulations. But what is net neutrality? How are this debate and legislation even relevant to digital marketing?

In December 2017, the FCC voted (3-2) to dismantle a previous ruling that recognized broadband Internet as a public Title II utility, like electricity or water. For the past few years, all Internet traffic has been treated identically, with no one website or provider getting higher priority for their traffic.

Ajit Pai, Current Chairman of FCC (credit USDA)

The FCC’s vote to deregulate broadband Internet could have far-reaching effects on digital marketing, disrupting advertising prices, viewability standards, and creating unfair competition. If a powerful company like Amazon can prioritize their own ad traffic through their servers, customers are more likely to click on their ad copy, giving them a competitive advantage in the marketplace that heretofore didn’t exist. The impact of repealing net neutrality is damaging not only to consumers but also to brands and agencies.

What is Net Neutrality?

 Simply put, net neutrality is the fundamental principle that all data on the Internet should be treated equally, no matter where it comes from, or where it’s being sent. Net neutrality means that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can’t decide to discriminate against or charge differently based on user type, content, platform, application, method of communication, website, or other factors. The definition of net neutrality is Internet equality.

There have been many attempts over the last two decades to infringe upon these basic precepts, such as Comcast throttling peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing companies like The Pirate Bay, AT&T limiting FaceTime on the iPhone to users with certain data plans, and companies like Verizon Wireless slowing down video services on their network. Despite the evidence that ISPs will violate net neutrality for their bottom line, the FCC repealed its Open Internet Order on the basis that the market could self-regulate. The loss of net neutrality’s effects will be extensive across the consumer and business sectors.

How Does Net Neutrality Impact Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing is currently an $80 billion annual industry. While there are many large players in the sector—Google, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft– it’s the many small marketing agencies and ad networks that drive competition and innovation in the space. Without a free and open Internet that creates competition for organic traffic and the best paid search, larger companies will begin to gain a clear advantage in the space over a short period. Why should an ad network like Google prioritize your ad if they can prioritize one from a corporate sponsor?

Digital marketing, including SEO, content marketing, paid search, and even social media marketing, could lose previously level competition from non-net neutrality rules. Small- and medium-sized businesses could lose out, have their traffic and revenue drop, and watch as the larger players take a bigger slice of the pie.

What is the Future of Net Neutrality and Digital Marketing?

Net Neutrality Rally in San Francisco (credit Wikimedia)

Despite the potential gains for many large technology companies, Reddit, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Netflix, and others are standing up against these anti-net neutrality rules. Many members of the Senate are trying to overrule the FCC and reinstate the Open Internet Order. It’s unclear what the future of the Internet will look like under the new guidance (or lack thereof) of the current FCC. In the short time it was in effect, net neutrality helped to create a more open and fair Internet.

Digital marketing has flourished and grown in the last decade and hopefully, the repeal of net neutrality will only be a blip in the innovative new ways it grows in the next. Agencies and ad companies must adapt to the new rules, advocate for the return of net neutrality, and work toward a future with Open Internet.

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