DMA Insight #8: Not one to keep a low profile – new EC consultation on gatekeeper reporting template for consumer profiling

Another day, another DMA consultation, as the European Commission yesterday asked for feedback on its new gatekeeper reporting obligations template. Out just in time for August holidays, interested parties can submit their responses until 15 September.

The subject of the consultation is the Article 15 audit obligations for gatekeepers on their consumer profiling activities.

What is consumer profiling

Consumer profiling is, in a nutshell, the use of personal data to create a personal “profile” which can be used by a platform to provide targeted content to end users. Consumer profiling is commonly used in digital advertising to deliver personalised advertisements to targeted audiences.

The draft template for gatekeepers

The draft template as it stands now requires gatekeepers to submit an externally and independently audited description of the profiling techniques that they use, together with a comprehensive, non-confidential and regularly updated overview of the audited description of each profiling technique, which will be made available to the public.

The requested information includes:

• the specific purpose of each profiling technique
• the legal ground justifying its use
• the categories of personal data about consumers collected and inferred 
• the qualitative and quantitative impact of profiling for the gatekeepers’ businesses. 

Gatekeepers will also need to explain which technical safeguards are put in place to prevent advertisement based on the profiling of minors and the degree of success of these safeguards.

Gatekeepers will also have to inform on whether consent from the consumers is required for each purpose of profiling, which actions are taken to make users aware that they are undergoing profiling, and how can they give, refuse or withdraw their consent to it.

Additionally, platforms will need to indicate if alternative measures to profiling have been implemented or, at least, considered.

A marketing opportunity amongst the red tape?

In the consultation, the EC sets out its ideal that transparency should help avoid a profiling arms race and “deep consumer profiling” becoming the industry standard. 

It also suggests that the audited description would “allow competitors to differentiate themselves through the use of superior privacy guarantees”. 

Is the audited description destined to be another weapon in the battle for gatekeeper superiority?