Four of Six Major U.K. ISPs Shy Away from Phorm

Sky and Tiscali are the latest ISPs to signal they won’t be employing behavioral targeting technologies from Phorm or NebuAd across their networks, despite having held discussions with the firms. Existing Phorm partner Talk Talk, however, says it is committed to the technology, and may even roll it out without conducting preliminary consumer trials.

In a market subject to rising costs and fierce competition, service providers are scrambling to identify alternative revenue streams beyond their traditional role as the “dumb pipes” of the online world. As a result, many have actively explored possibilities surrounding behavioral ad targeting.

However, speaking with ClickZ News this week, a spokesperson for Sky Broadband implied the firm would not make use of network-level technologies in their current forms, despite having spoken with a number of companies operating in the area. “Of paramount importance is the online safety of our customers, and we will only implement a solution when we can use customer data in a responsible way which safeguards privacy,” the spokesperson said.

Similarly, a Tiscali spokesperson said, “I believe we have spoken to both companies, but we have not implemented Phorm, NebuAd or any similar behavioral targeting system, and we do not have any plans to do so.”

Last month, ISP Orange, also backed away from use of the technology, citing privacy concerns. Still, the firm did not discount the use of behavioral targeting technology entirely. “We are open to finding new ways of using data that will provide value to our customers and to advertisers alike,” said a spokesperson.

Even progress with Phorm’s existing ISP partners appears to be slow. Last week, Virgin Media suggested it was a case of if, rather than when, it would implement the technology. After months of delay, British Telecom did start trials with Phorm in late September.

One ISP that appears more positive about the technology is Carphone Warehouse-owned Talk Talk. Speaking with ClickZ News this week, a Talk Talk spokesperson said the company was “very committed to Phorm.” In September, Phorm said it expected the ISP to carry out trials of its technology, in reference to which the spokesperson said, “We may not conduct consumer trials, we may just roll it out. We will invite customers to choose whether or not to be involved. We don’t have a time line at present, but we want to make sure that when we introduce it to our customers it’s the best it can be.”

When questioned about privacy concerns that have been raised surrounding the system, the spokesperson added, “There’s been a lot of debate surrounding it, and we welcome that diligence and scrutiny.”

So, of the U.K.’s six major service providers, four are unlikely to make use of network-level targeting technology as it exists in its current form. As far as Phorm is concerned, a great deal now seems to be riding on the successful outcome of trials currently being conducted with BT customers.