Doubleclick in Discussions to Settle Privacy Dispute Doubleclick in Discussions to Settle Privacy Dispute Paul Jones
Ad giant DoubleClick is in talks with the state of Michigan in an effort to ward off a threatened lawsuit over the company's privacy practices. The State of Michigan Attorney General's office on February 17 initiated legal proceedings against DoubleClick, alleging that the company illegally failed to disclose to Internet users that it was placing cookies on their hard drives. The "notice of intended action" warned DoubleClick that a lawsuit would be filed if the company didn't enter into talks about halting the illegal actions and providing remedy for past offenses.
"DoubleClick is currently holding discussions with Attorneys General from a few states around the country," said Josh Isay, director of public policy at DoubleClick.
"We can't comment on the state of the negotiations but we are cooperating fully."
Other than Michigan, Connecticut and Vermont are reportedly involved in discussions, but those offices didn't immediately return calls. The New York State Attorney General's office confirms its inquiry into DoubleClick. It started talking with the company in January, and now says it hopes to soon resolve the issues.
