INTC spent $1.3 billion on advertising in 1998. I had no idea it was spending that kind of money on advertising. And I find it difficult to understand the reasons that make this kind of spending effective or worthwhile.
What I mean is, the general public, or even the Internut public, doesn't usually call up INTC and order a bunch of transistors (like they might call up McDonald's or Pizza Hut for fries or a pizza).
For Personal Use Only
>>>>>
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dailynews.yahoo.com
Thursday August 19 3:00 AM ET
Intel To Make Web Sites Add Warnings
By TED BRIDIS Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - In the latest move to discourage government regulation,
Intel Corp. (Nasdaq:INTC - news) said it will require Internet sites that carry its advertising to warn
consumers what personal details are being collected about them online.
Intel, which spent $1.3 billion on all advertising last year, is among the largest buyers of ads on the Internet, especially with its
prominent campaign featuring the familiar ''Intel Inside'' swirl logo.
Intel's announcement Wednesday follows similar threats earlier this year by IBM, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news)
and The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS - news) to withhold advertising from Web sites that do not publish adequate privacy
warnings.
''We're now joining the ranks,'' said Ann Lewnes, Intel's director of worldwide advertising.
The high-tech industry wants to convince the federal government that it can regulate itself and that new privacy laws are not
needed to protect consumers on the Internet.
Intel said it will require by Jan. 1 that all the roughly 200 ''Intel Inside'' sites worldwide comply with privacy guidelines
developed by the Online Privacy Alliance, a trade group of companies on the Web.
The Federal Trade Commission, which recommended to Congress this summer that new Internet privacy laws are not needed,
praised Intel's announcement.
The FTC told lawmakers that some Web sites ''still do not understand the importance of consumer privacy,'' but decided
companies voluntarily were creating rules for handling sensitive personal information.
''Web sites will know they won't get advertising dollars unless they protect consumers' privacy,'' said Vicki Streitfeld, a
spokeswoman for the FTC. ''It's the kind of thing we hope will create strong incentives to create their own privacy policies.''
The OPA guidelines require Web sites to tell consumers what information is being collected, allow people to ask not to have
any information gathered about them, keep private details secure and allow consumers to review their information for accuracy
and correct it.
As part of that ''Intel Inside'' campaign, which includes the largest share of the company's ad expenditures, Intel pays a special
premium - mostly to computer markers - to include the familiar logo in their advertisements.
Intel earlier this summer told other Internet sites where it buys traditional ads they must publish privacy policies by Sept. 1.
Lewnes said Intel estimates that about 70 percent of Web sites that carry the company's ads already publish privacy policies,
and predicted the others will shortly.
''We don't anticipate a very large problem,'' she said.
Intel angered privacy groups earlier this year when it included in its latest Pentium III computer processors a unique serial
number to transmit to Web sites that request it to help verify the identity of consumers.
Intel said the feature will help eliminate online fraud and control access to sensitive data. Some privacy groups argued that the
so-called tracking technology will give companies unprecedented ability to trace consumers' moves as they navigate the Web.
Some of those same privacy groups took a dim view of Intel's latest announcement. David Banisar of the Washington-based
Electronic Privacy Information Center, said the OPA guidelines themselves are ''virtually worthless'' because they ''set up
procedural barriers that consumers have to hop over to have some kind of marginal control over their information.''
''I don't think in the long run it makes much difference at all, given how limited the privacy protections are,'' Banisar said. ''This
doesn't provide any real level of comfort to consumers.''
Copyright © 1996-1999 The Associated Press.
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