Currently I am working within the digital marketing space, this has also turned out to be another unhealthy obsession… I am quite a geek when it comes to innovative ways of using social networks and social currency to engage with brands, bands and fans etc. I love to “twitter” and I am always exploring new developments in the web 2.0 arena.

The thing that currently keeps me awake into the wee, small hours is the debate over ‘consumption v ownership’ and ‘compensation v control’. I am really interested in how these areas develop with regards to the music industry and what exciting ways they can be used in the development of brands engaging with consumers and fans.

Some of the projects I have been involved with over the last couple of years have been award winning

Winner of ‘Music and Brand Partnership of the Year’ 2009 Musicweek Awards for Bacardi & Groove Armada (Euro RSCG KLP)

Winner of ‘Communication Campaign Featuring PR’ 2009 MCCA Best Award for Bacardi & Groove Armada (Euro RSCG KLP)

Winner Best on Merseyside 2008 Award, Big Chip 10 (Creative Cultures)

Commendation Best Digital Marketing and Digital Brand Development 2008 Award, Big Chip 10 for We Love (CreativeCultures)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2009/jun/09/games-dvd-music-downloads-piracy

It’s becoming more and more obvious that a music industry that is based on the sale of linear / one way entertainment items is not only becoming more and more difficult to maintain, but a stupid idea in the first place

Music needs to be taken out of the stockpile and re-inserted into communities

Makes for interesting reading, particularly in view of the move towards setting up a Welsh Creative Commons - Welsh Creative Commies?

http://www.neilcocker.com

During the sandpit session at the Creative Capital event in London, we mapped the music business “ecosystem”. Our aim was to take a broad view and figure out the technological, social, cultural, economic, legal and other forces affecting the future of the music business.

Our discussion touched on data collection by private companies so I mentioned Phorm and afterwards wrote a blog post here. I only meant it as a quick intro to the misgivings that some people (notably Open Rights Group in the UK) have about the company and its practices.

My point was that there are different kinds of data collection, not necessarily benign. This is just an example and in general this kind of discussion will continue for a while yet.

On 19th May 2009 I received an email directly from Benjamin Usher of the Phorm Communications Team. I’ve had no dealings with the company before now, neither had I ever written about them. So I can only assume he picked it up on a blog search, as any good PR person would. I’ve reproduced his email below verbatim.

Hello Carl,

I read your blog post on Future Music Lab:
http://www.futuremusiclab.com/participants/phorm-and-deep-packet-inspection/

There are some common misconceptions about our technology which unfortunately have almost become accepted wisdom, and with an area like people’s privacy I think it is important that people know the facts. I hope you agree. In that spirit I wanted to address a few points from your article.

* You write:  ‘it’s not opt-in (unless you go out of your way to choose your ISP)’
Users will be provided with unmissable notice of the service, what it offers, and how it works, so that they can make an informed choice as to whether to participate or not. The most recent BT trial was conducted on a completely opt in basis. As well as being shown the unmissable invitation to join the system, users can check whether the system is on or off, and switch it off or on at any time. This goes way beyond current internet standards on consumer consent.

* You write: ‘You may not feel comfortable with this level of access to your data by Phorm’s clients - which could be companies or possibly government - without your express permission. I think most people are unaware of the ramifications of this, I’ll say that much.’
Phorm does not store the sites users visit. Phorm uses technology that has been designed to avoid storing any information that might identify a customer personally. The service does not store your browsing history, IP address, or any personally identifiable information. The unique design of Phorm’s technology ensures that consumer privacy is protected and that, even under compulsion, no personally-identifying data or detailed browsing data can be retroactively provided to anyone.

* You write: ‘Web creator Tim Berners-Lee says:I want to know if I look up a whole lot of books about some form of cancer that that’s not going to get to my insurance company and I’m going to find my insurance premium is going to go up by 5% because they’ve figured I’m looking at those books.’
Phorm want consumers to be safe online, and we are committed to following the IAB guidelines on behavioural targeting. Phorm does not allow advertising in a number of sensitive categories:
- Tobacco
- Medical
- Alcohol
- Pornography
- Gambling (except National Lottery)
- UK Political Parties
In addition, since Phorm’s system is designed not to store any personally identifiable information, we cannot give or sell it onto any third party. Therefore Sir Tim Berners-Lee’s metaphor would not apply to Phorm’s system.

If you are interested in knowing how Phorm’s service works, I’d be happy to set up a tech briefing for you.

If you or your readers are interested, you can see a short explanatory presentation on how Phorm works here:
http://www.phorm.com/about/introducing/how-phorm-works.html

best regards, Ben

Benjamin Usher
Phorm Communications Team

Mr Usher has given me his permission to publish the above email.

I am aware of security issues but wouldn’t consider that my core speciality. I’d just like to make this available so it’s available for public scrutiny and debate.

One response I have to this is - if users have the option of turning off Phorm, I’m a bit uncertain why they would ever leave it on. Are we to believe the advertising offers are just too compelling to ignore? I’m willing to be educated on this.

This is a group blog written by several music, media and web professionals. Any views I’ve expressed are my own. (Also I know this blog is intended for discussing a range of issues related to music business, not just law or privacy. I’m sure Andre or Tim can let me know if this gets excessive! I can easily continue it on my personal blog.)