Deutsche Telekom AG,
Orange SA, Telefónica SA, and Vodafone Group Plc are to form a joint venture for
the implementation of a privacy-by-design digital marketing technology platform
in Europe that could benefit consumers, advertisers and publishers alike.
The creation of this new
entity according to a statement has been approved by the European Commission,
pursuant to the European Union Merger Regulation. The four companies will take
equal 25% stakes in a newly-formed joint venture holding company, to be based
in Belgium and run by independent management under the oversight of a
shareholder-appointed supervisory board.
The joint venture is the
outcome of a project launched by Vodafone and run by the four operators to
develop a technological solution for digital advertising in Europe. The
platform has been designed from the outset to be compliant with European data
protection policies such as GDPR and the ePrivacy directive.
The partners have already
initiated a trial in Germany. Other trials are being considered in France and
Spain to further develop the platform and it is intended to make it available
to any operator within Europe. The trial platform requires affirmative opt-in
consent by the consumer to activate communications from brands via publishers.
The only data that is shared is a pseudo-anonymous digital token that cannot be
reverse-engineered.
Consumers are free to opt-in or deny consent with a single click, as well as revoke any other consent
given either on the brand’s or publisher’s website or via a dedicated, easily
accessible privacy portal. The platform is specifically designed to offer
consumers a step change in the control, transparency, and protection of their
data, which is currently collected, distributed, and stored at scale by major,
non-European players.
The trial run by Vodafone
last year successfully tested the platform on Vodafone’s and Deutsche Telekom’s
networks in Germany, together with online publishers and advertisers. This
enabled the four operators to evaluate the platform’s ease of use in providing
consumers with greater control and transparency over how brands communicate
with them.
Furthermore, the
initiative has examined how consumers’ personal data is used and their privacy
protected in the online advertising ecosystem while upholding the principles
of a free Internet. The joint venture will outline its vision and strategy in
due course, including its plans for adopting the trial technology commercially.
