Telenet reaches agreement with Privacy Commission on privacy policy concerning relevant TV advertising

19 July 2017 - In September of last year Telenet notified all its customers of its new privacy policy, which was updated following a test project with relevant advertising on the SBS-TV channels Vier, Vijf and Zes (Four, Five and Six). In this new privacy policy the company introduced four different privacy levels, giving the customer the opportunity to indicate at any time which level they prefer and what data they are happy to share with Telenet. Customers were categorized as standard in the third level ‘personal’[1]. This led to certain concerns as a result of which Telenet entered into dialogue with relevant stakeholders. At the beginning of July Telenet reached an agreement with the relevant authority, the Privacy Commission.

The agreement negotiated with the Privacy Commission stipulates that Telenet must introduce a number of clarifications in its privacy policy. For example, it will be specifically stated that in order to be able to receive targeted TV advertising data will be used from third parties such as Bisnode, e.g. to check whether someone has a garden if the intent is to broadcast advertising on lawnmowers. The categorization into four levels will also be specified in more detail to make it clear to the customer what each level entails.

The Privacy Commission also confirmed that Telenet can maintain its current approach (four levels clearly explained to the customer with the option to change at any time), even after May 2018 when the European General Data Protection Legislation takes effect. However, all customers must receive a clear and transparent reminder about their existing privacy settings prior to that date. New Telenet customers, joining after May 2018, will be categorized as standard in level 2 ‘direct’ and will not automatically receive personalised TV advertising.

Telenet would like to emphasize that it will always comply with current privacy legislation. Telenet will implement the required amendments and clarifications as soon as possible and again notify all its customers in person accordingly.

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[1] Further information on Telenet’s privacy policy and the different levels (see item 7) is available from: https://www2.telenet.be/nl/privacy/