Privacy and Ethical Issues in Database/Interactive Marketing and Public Policy: A Research Framework and Overview of the Special Issue

Privacy is a high-profile public policy issue that affects consumers and marketers. The emergence of online marketing brings new privacy concerns that have resulted in Federal Trade Commission scrutiny and review. At the same time, industry groups and associations have been active in self-regulation efforts. To highlight areas in which marketing researchers can add value to the public policy discussion on privacy, the author provides a research framework that highlights four aspects of information exchange between marketers and consumers. The author argues that improving exchange mechanisms will provide consumers with more control and the ability to make more informed trade-offs of personal information for benefits. Within this framework, the author provides an overview of the articles in this special issue and suggests avenues for further research.