advertising

The head of the advertising coalition at the forefront of the policy debate over new privacy protections for consumers blasted browser makers Microsoft and Mozilla at a Senate hearing Wednesday for derailing cross-industry work developing a feature allowing Internet users to opt out of behavioral tracking.

The online ad industry has attacked Mozilla over its decision to block third-party cookies in a future release of Firefox, calling the move "dangerous and highly disturbing," and claiming that it will result in more ads shown to users.

Less than a year ago, Facebook acknowledged that it had to improve its ability to generate revenue from its mobile users or face a tough future. Today, executives call Facebook 'a mobile company.'

Facebook announced a trial program that could let paid advertisers directly message users' in-boxes, which have traditionally been held for messages from friends.

An innovative new type of mobile advertising is being used to funnel money to support hunger relief efforts. Dubbed GetCharitable, the new Android app replaces the background image on a phone with a periodically updated ad, revenue from which is then directed to an international anti-famine group -- offering users a way to help combat famine for free.

U.S. marketers spent 14 percent more in online advertising in the first half of the year, compared with the same period in 2011, hitting US$17 billion, according to a study sponsored by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and conducted by PwC US.

The Federal Trade Commission is looking to update 12-year-old framework for disclosure and privacy as marketers increasingly seed messages on mobile devices and social networking sites.