Alan Chapell finds the recent cookie controversy over-hyped, but some consumer education is in order.

Mark Twain once quipped, “Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” I can only wonder what he’d have to say about our industry’s recent dialog around cookies.

My former colleagues at Jupiter are no doubt pretty happy to have their numbers vindicated, after a good deal of skepticism was leveled against their report from many -- including me.

Of course, which research methodology was right is ultimately far less important than the action items that each of us can take away from the research as a whole. And I think there are still a few things we can draw from the recent body of research on cookies.

• First, while consumer’s SAY they delete cookies, they are sometimes not deleting them quite as frequently in practice. Is this a statistically insignificant discrepancy, or another disconnect in consumer behavior that needs further examination? Stay tuned.
  
  
• Second, the overall impact of those who DO delete their cookies is less significant than previously thought.
  
   
• Third, and most importantly, this research demonstrates that -- at least for now -- the accountability of online has not yet been significantly impacted by cookie deletion.

But should we necessarily breathe easier after digesting the results of the new and improved Atlas study? I’m not so sure.

As I mentioned in a previous article on cookies, it’s not the number of consumers who are deleting cookies that has me concerned. It’s their collective fear and loathing of online profiling that keeps me awake at night.

At this point, some of this fear and loathing is beginning to result in the wholesale deletion of cookies by some consumers. And while it's encouraging to note that cookie deletion has not increased significantly over the past few months, given the current cultural and political climate, who’s to say it's not going to get worse? And what, if anything, should our industry be doing to gain consumer acceptance of cookies?

Like most big questions, it depends upon whom you ask. Some in the industry are reluctant to act -- fearing, I suppose that any action may make things worse. Others have suggested that attempts at education are inherently futile because consumers simply don’t give a damn. Others are still searching for the right solution.

Consumer Education

Many in the industry, myself included, have talked and/or written about educating consumers on the value proposition of cookies. It’s a great concept, and it certainly makes for good article fodder. But what does it really mean? What is it about cookies that consumers are supposed to embrace?

Maybe it's as simple as assuring people that cookies are not inherently bad, despite the insinuations of some of the anti-spyware software companies. Perhaps it's about educating consumers that an ad server recognizing that a particular desktop has visited the Tower Music website is not inherently creepy, while knowing that Alan visited the Tower Music store in the East Village might be. And maybe we need to disavow consumers of any notions of a correlation between online profiling and identity theft.

But perhaps reassuring their safety is not enough of a benefit to move the needle. In other words, the real challenge may be in telling consumers how cookies make their lives (or at least their online experience) better.

It’s a much simpler argument to make for first party cookies. Anyone who’s tried to surf the internet after disabling all first party cookies can probably attest to that. Unfortunately, the value proposition for third party cookies isn’t nearly as direct. Accountability is the most significant benefit of third party cookies. But drawing the connection between accountability, advertising revenue and free content is kind of like having Al Gore over to discuss the implications of global warming. People may very well tune out before we get through the first sentence.

Of course, this entire thread presumes that consumers understand the difference between first and third party cookies -- a presumption that I’m not necessarily inclined to draw. Clearly, some of our elected Representatives don’t always distinguish between first and third party cookies. Can we necessarily expect more from those they represent?

What about relevance?

Most consumers, when asked, will indicate that they’d rather get a relevant ad than an irrelevant ad. And many have indicated that they are willing to give up some of their privacy -- either by providing personal information, or by agreeing to have their online movements tracked -- in exchange for more relevant ads. But as the Atlas Study demonstrates, consumers don’t always practice what they preach.

So at the end of the day, will consumers truly embrace the tradeoff between privacy and ad relevance? What about the tradeoff between free content and advertising?

Send me an email and tell me what you think. And get involved in www.safecount.org. Your industry needs you.

Additional resources:

The Media Maze: The Cookie Crumbles
Friday Fodder: the Week in Review

Alan Chapell, CIPP, is president of Chapell & Associates, a consulting firm that helps companies understand privacy and incorporate consumer perception into product development. He has been in the interactive space for more than seven years with firms such as Jupiter Research, DoubleClick and Cheetahmail. Mr. Chapell is the New York chapter co-chair of the International Association of Privacy Professionals, publishes a daily blog on issues of consumer privacy, and will be teaching a class on privacy and marketing at NYU this summer.