There has been some talk in Washington lately that has caught my attention. Yes, I know that sounds like a strange comment for a political blogger to make but hear me out. For those of us who do business online (in my case, offer online advertising and do reviews), the Federal Trade Commission is talking about taking a bigger role in regulating the online advertising industry.

The concern comes down to disclosure and transparency. For example, if you note above, I have a tab labeled “Disclosure” that opens a page with 300+ words informing the visitor that I do run ads on my website. Have you ever read the page? Did you even know it existed?

Consumer advocates argue that people are being taken advantage of online by advertisers and retailers because the websites are misleading people about the costs of their products, the results of their online activity, and tracking cookies that allow websites to better target products to the website visitors. FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said this week that “Sometimes overzealous marketers just aren’t presenting consumers with an adequate choice and a transparency about what they are doing with information, and we think that is very problematic. If the industry doesn’t step up to the plate with vigorous and consistent self-regulation, they are inviting a more regulatory approach.”

This increased regulation has caught the attention of some of the bigger players in the online market place. Online entrepreneur Jeremy Schoemaker (from Shoemoney.com) noted that “it’s good that there is going to be more regulation obviously, but I think it’s really bad because … [the government is] very uneducated about what we do, and … they don’t even understand what they are doing.” This is often the case with new industries and technologies.

The government has good intentions, but acting without examining the basics first can cause more problems in the end. The editor from DM Confidential states it well, “[The expression 'the customer is always right' is] a saying that somehow the majority of American consumers have internalized, acting with a growing sense of entitlement.” Sometimes we expect a certain level of handholding with our transactions, and when we are surprised by an unexpected outcome, we seek to blame the seller. However, Schoemaker properly states, “Eventually the responsibility has to fall on the consumer.”

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