Allow me to retort. Firstly, they are still public, the deal hasn't closed yet (or at least I haven't see the SEC filing indicating the shareholder vote.
Secondly, you are ignoring the fact that Doubleclick doesn't operate the ads. The advertising agencies and marketers do. I loathe popups like anyone, but lest we not forget that web sites, including myself, could have a policy to ban popups.
Lastly, and I have my Doubleclick legal contract in front of me, they do not own any data! I do! If I choose to use another ad server, guess what. All that data is mine, as governed by my privacy policy, not Doubleclick. You are basically jumping to your own conclusion about that privacy statement. It is explicit that they cannot capture and contrast any data that occurs on my website with another website.
Don't get me wrong here, I'm not defending them per se. I'm defending the concept that most people are blaming the mail man for delivering junk mail when it's the companies who buy your data and market to you that's to blame.
You are horribly misinformed. Redirect that energy to the advertising industry, meaning those agencies and marketers who cherish your eyeballs, not Doubleclick. Only then is your first paragraph remotely accurate.
While Doubleclick builds the technology that enables advertising, they are not pulling the levers. They do not throw pop-ups in your face, they do not install spyware, and they certainly don't track you across sites. To assume they do is foolish on your part...do your research and read all about the privacy obligations they must adhere to. I know this because I use their technology to run advertising on my site.
Here's something else for you to chew on. Companies spent over $9 billion on online advertising last year. Take a look at Doubleclick's SEC filings and their 300M or so in revenue. Sounds like they aren't the main culprit you are making them out to be.
It's easy to blame the company whose name you see on the ad tags and cookies, but look behind the curtain and know that they are filling a market need...enabling people like me to monetize the content we provide.
Allow me to retort. Firstly, they are still public, the deal hasn't closed yet (or at least I haven't see the SEC filing indicating the shareholder vote. Secondly, you are ignoring the fact that Doubleclick doesn't operate the ads. The advertising agencies and marketers do. I loathe popups like anyone, but lest we not forget that web sites, including myself, could have a policy to ban popups. Lastly, and I have my Doubleclick legal contract in front of me, they do not own any data! I do! If I choose to use another ad server, guess what. All that data is mine, as governed by my privacy policy, not Doubleclick. You are basically jumping to your own conclusion about that privacy statement. It is explicit that they cannot capture and contrast any data that occurs on my website with another website. Don't get me wrong here, I'm not defending them per se. I'm defending the concept that most people are blaming the mail man for delivering junk mail when it's the companies who buy your data and market to you that's to blame.
You are horribly misinformed. Redirect that energy to the advertising industry, meaning those agencies and marketers who cherish your eyeballs, not Doubleclick. Only then is your first paragraph remotely accurate. While Doubleclick builds the technology that enables advertising, they are not pulling the levers. They do not throw pop-ups in your face, they do not install spyware, and they certainly don't track you across sites. To assume they do is foolish on your part...do your research and read all about the privacy obligations they must adhere to. I know this because I use their technology to run advertising on my site. Here's something else for you to chew on. Companies spent over $9 billion on online advertising last year. Take a look at Doubleclick's SEC filings and their 300M or so in revenue. Sounds like they aren't the main culprit you are making them out to be. It's easy to blame the company whose name you see on the ad tags and cookies, but look behind the curtain and know that they are filling a market need...enabling people like me to monetize the content we provide.