F.A.Q.

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Check out our handy glossary if you need help with some of the jargon.

1 – About EDAA

The European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance empowers consumers with greater transparency, choice and control, and provides the tools for businesses to enable that to happen.

EDAA is responsible for the administration of two industry-wide Programmes: the Self-Regulatory Programme on Data-Driven Advertising, and the Advanced Advertising Transparency Programme (AATP). Both Programmes, developed at different times and in response to evolving regulatory requirements, aim to enable consumers, through the display of the AdChoices Icon, to access transparency information about the ads they see online and exercise choice with regard to data-driven advertising. The Icon and other transparency resources are available to all companies delivering ads to consumers in the European Union. Read more About EDAA.

EDAA’s website provides important resources to learn more about the Programme, and an overview of the initiative can be found here. You can also view a short video summarising the Programme on YouTube. 

The Advanced Advertising Transparency Programme (AATP) offers an adaptable ad transparency solution that helps companies comply with the transparency requirements of the Digital Services Act (DSA).

By establishing a framework for cross-industry collaboration, the AATP ensures that important information about each digital ad is collected at the source, transferred across the supply chain, and delivered in a clear and accessible way to consumers through the AdChoices Icon.

An overview of the initiative can be found here. You can also view a short video summarising the Programme on YouTube. 

2 – European Principles

The European Principles documents include

  • The IAB Europe OBA Framework serves to codify industry self-regulatory standards for Online Behavioural Advertising in Europe, highlighting a set of key principles that participating companies must adhere to.
  • The EASA Best Practice Recommendation on OBA builds on this Framework by providing guidance to national advertising Self-Regulatory Organisations, under the umbrella of the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA), to apply credible complaint handling and sanctions mechanisms, ensuring the accountability of the Programme.
  • The Technical Specifications for Implementing the IAB Europe OBA Framework and EASA BPR in Europe details how companies should technically apply the OBA Icon to online ads and how to avoid collision of overlays being applied at different stages in the ad delivery process.

Over several years, the Programme and principles have also expanded, for instance into the mobile and video advertising spaces, to keep pace with evolving market technologies and consumer use trends. As such, the European Principles have built upon the initial Framework and BPR, to include today:

  • The Self-Certification Criteria for Participating Companies,
  • Application of the Principles in the Mobile Environment,
  • Ad Marker Implementation Guidelines for Mobile,
  • Ad Marker Implementation Guidelines for Video.

It is important for companies to review each of the aforementioned European Principles documents and implement the appropriate practices to ensure full compliance with the self-regulatory approach.

The European Principles focus on the practice of Online Behavioural Advertising and do not cover:

  • Strictly “first party” OBA – i.e. OBA data collection and use by a website operator, across their own website(s). Website operators are nevertheless strongly advised to sign up and use the AdChoices Icon in order to provide ‘adequate disclosure’ to consumers where OBA may be happening by third parties acting across their website(s);
  • Contextual advertising (display advertising which is delivered based on the context/content of the page where it is displayed);
  • Ad delivery and ad reporting (as defined in the European Principles).

While the European Principles are intended to apply broadly across a wide range of marketing and media entities, they focus on:

  • “Third Parties” such as advertising networks and data companies (including data aggregators) and in some cases advertisers;
  •  “Website Operators” such as publishers and advertisers.

These types of entities work interdependently to deliver relevant advertising to specific computers or devices in ways that enrich the consumer online experience. The Principles also cover technologies that are intended to collect all or substantially all URLs (websites) that a PC (or any other device) traverses and uses such data for interest-based advertising. This could include tools and software like toolbars, desktop applications, ISP-based technologies, etc.

Companies must fulfill their specific obligations under the European Principles related to the particular role(s) of each company in collecting and/or using data for interest-based advertising purposes.

The European Self-Regulatory Programme does not directly cover Ad Servers and Platforms’ activities in so far as they are acting merely as a tool for their clients, and do not themselves collect, use, nor own, any such data for their own purposes. However, if their clients are using such data through the ad server/platform’s technology, those clients must be informed about the need to comply with the European Principles.

Your obligations under the European Principles differ depending on your role in the European online digital advertising ecosystem. For more information, companies should refer to the European Principles documents and self-certification criteria.

All companies acting as third parties (as defined in the European Principles) who are engaged in the use of OBA data in order to deliver ads must sign up to use the AdChoices Icon from EDAA. All companies engaged in the collection of OBA data must participate in the Consumer Choice Platform. In order to obtain the relevant services agreements, please apply here.

Website Operators may voluntarily participate to use the AdChoices Icon and there are many benefits in doing so (see Q8 of these FAQs for more information). Website Operators should also ensure that all of the third parties involved in interest-based advertising they work with are participating in the European Self-Regulatory Programme and are compliant with the European Principles. Participating companies can be viewed here. Advertisers and agencies will also be able to recognise compliant “third party” partners by the EDAA ‘Trust Seal’, which will be awarded to companies following an independent compliance assessment and ongoing monitoring of their interest-based advertising practices – see Section 5 of these FAQs.

Acting as a first-party, you are under no obligations to use the AdChoices Icon. Under the European Principles, first parties must provide ‘adequate disclosure’ to consumers and may voluntarily apply to use the AdChoices Icon to use in footer links, if they wish to do so.

Though it is voluntary, using the AdChoices Icon has many benefits for first parties, as consumers recognise the AdChoices Icon and associate it with enhanced privacy standards. Put simply, website operators will reap rewards of increased consumer trust and therefore use of the AdChoices Icon could lead to increased consumer interaction with your website.

  • If you are collecting OBA data as a Website Operator for advertising or retargeting across websites under your Common Control (i.e. which you own and operate over 50%), then there is no need to integrate onto the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform.
  • If you are collecting OBA data from third party websites (either directly or through a technology provider) for use across your own websites, or if using OBA data collected from across your own websites for advertising or retargeting on third party websites, then you are effectively acting as a Third Party and would be required to integrate onto the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform, in order to give consumers the choice and control over this type of targeting. The latter would be considered as a form of Third-Party OBA.

The European Principles are designed as ‘technology-neutral’. As such, EDAA has released a set of principles covering mobile considerations, including the use of cross-app, precise location and personal directory data. For this environment, EDAA has released clear technical specifications for serving the AdChoices Icon across mobile ads (which applies to both mobile browser and mobile in-app), which can be consulted here. As yet, participating companies are not required to implement a mobile AppChoices platform for in-app choice under the European SR Programme.

However, all participating companies are required to respect the choices made by a consumer through alternative means (for instance, via the mobile device settings, application settings, or a company owned app-specific choice platform). Icon use in the mobile environment, as well as choices conducted through the web browser are considered components of the independent certification required under the Programme.

3 – OBA Icon & Consumer Choice Platform

The AdChoices Icon is a consumer-facing, interactive tool, symbolising consumer transparency, choice and control over interest-based advertising.

It is an interactive symbol to be placed in or around online ads (by “Third Parties”), or on websites where OBA data may be collected and/or used (by “Website Operators”) and demonstrates that companies involved in serving the ads are respecting the self-regulatory principles in a way that empowers consumers. The AdChoices Icon increases consumer and marketer trust in interest-based advertising by linking through to consumer-friendly information about interest-based and online advertising, including the information portal and Consumer Choice Platform YourOnlineChoices.eu.

The AdChoices Icon must always provide a clear and prominent link through the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform. This Platform ensures that the consumer is offered a clear and easily accessible choice and control mechanism over interest-based advertising, by some or all participating companies. The Platform is hosted on the website YourOnlineChoices.eu, administered by EDAA. This website (currently available in 33 country-specific versions and 27 different European languages) serves as a one-stop-shop for consumers, offering: (a) clear information about online and personalised advertising; (b) a mechanism to enact meaningful choice and control; and (c) a portal to file any consumer feedback or complaints with the national advertising Self-Regulatory Organisation (SRO) – see Section 5 of these FAQs.

Companies may also provide their own company-specific opt-out mechanisms; however, these must be in addition and complementary to participation on the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform, which serves as a pan-European, one-stop-shop for consumer information, choice and control regarding interest-based advertising across Europe.

All companies involved in actively using OBA data to deliver online display, mobile or video advertising should participate via a service agreement to use the AdChoices Icon.

Third Parties: for instance, ad networks, technology platforms, data aggregators, Demand Side Platforms (DSPs) and Supply Side Platforms (SSPs). To clear any doubt, retargeting is considered as Third-Party OBA covered by the European Principles.

Website Operators (voluntarily): advertisers and publishers across sites under their Common Control (owned and operated by the same company).

IMPORTANT NOTE:

It is the full responsibility of a company to hold a valid service agreement from EDAA for such use, regardless of how the integration is done (via an Approved Icon Provider or in-house).

Since the Ad Network is collecting and using OBA data on your behalf, each ad they place on your behalf must carry the AdChoices Icon, for which the licensing obligation sits with the Ad Network.

Many advertisers, however, prefer to manage the placement of the AdChoices Icon centrally via their Ad Agency and/or Ad Server to provide for more branded control of the messaging and in some cases reporting.

If you choose to manage this directly via your Ad Server or Ad Agency, the obligation to obtain the AdChoices Icon directly from EDAA sits directly with you, and you cannot use the AdChoices Icon via your Ad Server or Ad Agency without the right for your company to use it from EDAA.

All companies involved in actively collecting OBA data, which may be used to then deliver online display, mobile or video advertising based on this data, should register to integrate onto the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform, to provide consumers with the choice and control over their data collection. This also includes where data may be collected for retargeting purposes.

There are specific guidelines as to how the AdChoices Icon should be integrated on online advertising (types of ads, size, colour, etc.). These are specified in the Technical Specifications for implementing the IAB Europe OBA Framework and EASA BPR on OBA in Europe, as well as some further rights of use (and limitations) as detailed in the appropriate service agreement which can be requested from EDAA by applying through the online form.

In order that companies can effectively deploy the AdChoices Icon on their campaigns, EDAA has approved two commercial providers offering icon integration services: Evidon and TrustArc. We recommend the services of these providers and more information can be found here.

There are specific technical guidelines for integration and participation on the Platform, which will be provided by EDAA once a company has signed and returned the required service agreement(s). Integration requires, for instance, a link to the company privacy policy, a link to the company website, a short company description, and opt-in/out/status URLs to ensure the consumer choice is effective. The information should be provided in English (used as the default language) and in any other languages submitted by the company (voluntarily) for specific markets. Any updates to the information submitted should be subsequently informed to EDAA to ensure the effective running of the Platform. You will be designated a contact person at EDAA upon application, to ensure this runs smoothly.

The AdChoices Icon should be used as described in the Technical Specifications for implementing the IAB Europe OBA framework and EASA BPR in Europe.

Particularly, the AdChoices Icon should not be used for any other purpose/business need other than ensuring compliance with the European Principles and offering consumers the transparency and choice that the Icon represents.

Use of the AdChoices Icon and “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform is afforded to companies who have signified a commitment to the European Principles and signed the appropriate service agreement(s) with EDAA. 

No company may use the AdChoices Icon in Europe or integrate onto the Consumer Choice Platform without a valid service agreement from EDAA.

The Tariff Schedule is consistent for all participating companies and annexed to the corresponding EDAA service agreements. In brief, the fees are applied per calendar year, and are set at 5.000 EUR for each service.

In order to ensure that no company is ‘priced out’ of the Programme, EDAA also provides a 40% discounted rate for SMEs – 3.000 EUR per service. Is considered an SME any company with less than 3 million EUR in annual revenue from all online display, mobile and video advertising.

EDAA is an international non-profit organisation and the fees applied are designed to ensure that the European Self-Regulatory Programme can run effectively across all EU and EEA markets. The fees support operational aspects of the Programme such as an effective administration, development and maintenance of multiple websites including the monitoring and functioning of the Consumer Choice Platform, as well as integration with well-established Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs) for complaint handling across Europe and initiatives to build consumer understanding and awareness (such as a consumer awareness campaign and various related research projects).

EDAA has been established to administer the European Self-Regulatory Programme and in particular services for the AdChoices Icon and the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform to any company practising interest-based advertising within Europe.

As such, participation is done directly with EDAA and no company is required to be a member of any governing association or other industry trade or self-regulatory organisation in order to participate. Any company within Europe may apply directly to EDAA for use of the AdChoices Icon and may integrate onto the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform.

If you would prefer to contact a national-level organisation, local IABs and SROs (self-regulatory organisations) would be pleased to assist you. For contact details of your national IAB, please visit IAB Europe. For contact details of your national SRO, please visit the EASA website.

4 – Licensing Process

Having perused the European Principles documents, please apply for the AdChoices Icon and “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform via our online form.

If you have any questions prior to applying, which may not be covered in the European Principles or these FAQs, please contact us at: info [at] edaa [dot] eu.

Once the online application form has been submitted, you will receive an automated response to know that this has been received by EDAA. We will contact you further – usually between 1-3 working days – with a recommendation on how best to move forward within the Programme and will provide the appropriate services agreements, depending on your company’s business model.

There are separate services agreements for:

  • Website Operators using the AdChoices Icon in order to provide ‘adequate notice’ of OBA data collection and use by third parties permitted on their sites;
  • Third Parties using the AdChoices Icon in order to signal their OBA practices in a contextual (in-ad) manner to consumers;
  • Third Parties using the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform to provide consumers with choice and control over the collection and use of OBA data.

The corresponding service agreements are provided on a “fixed-form” basis. Once signed, EDAA will provide a package of further information (including icon creatives with accompanying texts for all markets; technical guidelines for “YOC” integration) and further details with regard to next steps in the Programme (self-certification and independent compliance assessment), and will support you through each step of your integration.

5 – Certification Process

Purpose: a ‘declaration’ of compliance to EDAA once the company is satisfied that they are fully adhering to the European Principles.

Timeframe: six months. All companies having joined the Programme will have 6 full months to complete the self-certification. Self-certification must be completed prior to the next step – an independent certification assessment and ongoing monitoring by an EDAA-approved Certification Provider. Companies not completing the self-certification within this timeframe will be considered to be in breach of the Programme, and EDAA may take appropriate action (i.e. withdrawing company use of the AdChoices Icon and/or integration on the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform).

Further information: please have a look at the self-certification criteria and the online form through which companies must submit their self-certification (this may also be submitted in PDF, if preferable). Once this form has been submitted, a copy is sent electronically to EDAA and a second copy is sent to the company (to the email address submitted on the form). Companies should retain their copy of the self-certification, as this may be requested at a later stage by their chosen Certification Provider in order to validate the information as part of completing the independent compliance assessment.

All participating companies are required to self-certify, though “Website Operators” have a significantly limited criteria, covering only the “adequate disclosure” requirement as outlined in the European Principles, respecting the different roles between Third Parties and Website Operators within the Programme.

Purpose: to complete an independent assessment of compliance and obtain the corresponding “Trust Seal”.

Companies can choose from a range of EDAA-approved Certification Providers in order to fulfil the further compliance obligations: an independent compliance assessment and continuous monitoring of compliance related activity. All approved providers to-date offer an annual assessment of compliance.

Timeframe: within 8 months of signing up. Companies not completing the independent compliance assessment within this timeframe will be considered to be in breach of the Programme, and EDAA may take appropriate action (i.e. withdrawing company use of the AdChoices Icon and/or integration on the “YOC” Consumer Choice Platform).

Further information: in order to help ensure a competitive market, EDAA has approved several providers. As the process must be handled independently of EDAA, exact pricing and assessment methodologies should be agreed directly between the company and the Certification Provider.

Certification Providers are required to apply the certification services in an independent manner (from industry and other services). All approved Certification Providers have verified this independence to the satisfaction of EDAA. Where a Certification Provider is also providing other services within the European Self-Regulatory Programme (such as acting as an approved Icon Provider), EDAA has deemed that these services are being performed in a manner demonstrating a clear separation of internal business processes.

Topline: the "Trust Seal" (pictured below) is a symbol of good standing, responsibility and trust towards the business community and consumers – demonstrating verified company compliance with the European Principles; it will be awarded once the company has self-certified and undertaken the compliance assessment, including an initial 30 days of uninterrupted ongoing monitoring of compliance by an approved Certification Provider (see FAQ 26 below). EDAA “Trust Seal” will be hosted by the company’s chosen Certification Provider (with back-end validation mechanisms) to be displayed on the compliant company’s website.

Timeframe: 8 months. The company should obtain the Trust Seal within 8 months of signing up to the Programme. This comprises of the 6 months for self-certification, an additional month for compliance assessment, and a further 30 days of ongoing monitoring prior to award of the Trust Seal. The Trust Seal is then subject to monitoring of compliance and must be renewed every 2 years from the date of issue (N.B. the validity of a Trust Seal has been extended from 1 year to 2 years as of 1 June 2018, to improve the certification process and services for the benefit of all participating companies).