Most Americans 'Welcome Do-Not-Track'

Most Americans would welcome a 'Do Not Track' measure to prevent advertisers from tracking their online movements, according to a new poll conducted by Gallup.

Results for this USA Today/Gallup poll were based on telephone interviews conducted earlier this month with a random sample of 1,019 adults aged 18 and older who are living in the US.

The survey found that 67% of respondents believe that advertisers should not be allowed to match ads to their specific interests based on web sites they have previously visited, and 61% say that these methods are not justifiable.

In a similar study conducted by online media and technology firm Burst Media, 78.2% of Internet users recall seeing online ads that they assumed were specifically targeted to them, while more than a third (34.2%) who recalled seeing these ads, disliked them.

The results follow the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) recent call for a 'Do Not Track' mechanism to be included in web browsers.

The IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) has since responded with a warning that the solution would require 'reengineering' of the Internet's architecture, while a report in AdWeek suggested that such a measure would amount to an 'apocalypse' for online advertisers.

In the Gallup survey, 50% of Americans said they used the Internet for more than an hour each day, including 68% of 18 to 34 year olds, 55% of 35 to 54 year olds, and 69% of those earning at least $75k per year.

While 6 in 10 of respondents say they have noticed that some ads are targeted specifically at them based on their web browsing history, 9 in 10 say they pay little or no attention to online ads.

However, on the plus side, young and affluent Americans say they would prefer to allow advertisers of their choosing to target ads to them, rather than allow all or no advertisers to do so.

Gallup concludes that because young and affluent Internet users appear amenable to receiving targeted ads from the advertisers they specifically choose, advertisers should ask users if they are willing to receive customized ads from them. Doing so, Gallup continues, would be likely to increase the amount of attention users pay to ads and decrease their displeasure with advertisers.

Web sites: www.gallup.com and www.burstmedia.com .