payments - Retail Systems

thoughts from the frontline
With the EU Cookie Directive
now in force, digital marketers
and retailers are going to have
to ensure they comply, while
still aiming to gather valuable
data on online behaviour.
Companies with online services
need to ensure compliance with
the law as the Independent
Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
has powers to penalise noncompliant
companies after May.
Retail Systems got the experts’
reactions...
Michael Ross, director of
eCommera, says: “Finally, last month,
the ICO issued their updated guidance
on the cookie policy – to say there was
a last minute change of heart would be
an understatement.
The whole premise of the cookie
regulation has moved from requiring
‘informed prior consent’ to now accepting
that ‘implied consent’ will suffice for
most situations.
It is a banal end to a year of stress and
anxiety for commercial players online
where the only people to benefit have
been the lawyers.
The banality of the ICO’s approach
is embarrassing. They appear to
have decided that it is important for
consumers to understand the intricacies
of cookies before they are safe to use
the internet. Really? It is like expecting
people to understand the basics of
quantum mechanics before they can buy
a microwave.
I have worked in the online world for
18 years and, whilst I understand what
cookies enable, I have little understanding
of how they work in practice. And why
cookies? What about HTML5? What
about browsers?
The reality is that consumers want
things to work and they want to make
sure that their information is not abused.
How that happens in practice is the job
for intelligent legislators and regulators.
It is shameful that the UK is kowtowing
to pointless EU legislation at a time when
when should be positioning the UK as a
global internet hub.”
Mark Haviland, MD at Rakuten
LinkShare, says: “While the EU
Cookie Directive has given a few online
businesses and marketers headaches
over the past year, ultimately the
conversation about privacy has
been productive. Trust and privacy
are paramount and we should all be
actively promoting open dialogue and
transparent business models.
Shoppers are becoming increasingly
discerning online, and the debate has
encouraged brands, agencies and other
online businesses to assess the quality
of marketing they serve to audiences,
and the respect they show for privacy.
It’s a call to action to turn data insights
into a better online experience, so that
consumers want to opt-in, be it implicit
or explicit.
As an industry, if we want to deliver
the tailored and personalised experiences
that shoppers increasingly expect, the
proper use of data is essential.”
Andy Mulcahy, head of
communications at IMRG, says:
“There has been a lot of concern
in the industry that the new cookie
opinion
requirements could prove disruptive
to the user experience and lead to
potential customers leaving a site.
While many consumers seem to find
the whole concept of cookies and what
they are used for confusing, the fact
that the latest eCustomerServiceIndex
results from eDigitalResearch and
IMRG showed 89 per cent regard
the new regulation as a positive
step suggests there is actually a real
opportunity for retailers to increase
trust and loyalty.”
Derek Eccleston, Head of
Research, at eDigitalResearch,
says: “It’s unsurprising that general
consumer knowledge surrounding
cookies and their uses is a bit confused.
However, now that the new rules and
regulations have come into force,
retailers and websites will need to be
doing everything in their power to
effectively and efficiently educate
visitors on how cookies are used,
especially those most essential to
site performance.”
• Of the 2,000 online consumers
surveyed by IMRG and eDR, 75 per
cent had not heard of the new
EU cookie directive. And of those
that had, only 16 per cent were truly
aware of what changes would come
into effect.
opinion
RS
June - July 2012 RS 21