AT&T and Verizon, two of the largest U.S. internet service providers, pledged yesterday at a hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee that they weren’t going to use targeted advertising tracking methods unless their clients specifically asked for them.

The ISPs stated that they were presently not using any such ad targeting systems, but if they were to do so, they would require “affirmative consent” from users before they would implement it. This position stands opposite to ISPs who were called to answer before congress when they experimented with the NebuAd behavioral ad targeting system that had an opt-out system but was enabled by default without asking users. This raised concerns from privacy advocates and once the matter gained the attention of senate, the trials were stopped. NebuAd, who have subsequently lost their CEO, have stated that they are considering pursuing more traditional forms of advertising.

Both ISPs stated today that they voluntarily agree, that if they ever implement targeted advertising through surfing habit tracking, this technology will only based on a clear, conspicuous opt-in system.

Peter Stern, chief strategy officer for Time Warner Cable said: "Presently, Time Warner Cable does not engage in targeted Internet advertising as an ISP or as a Web site operator. Should Time Warner Cable decide to engage in such activities, our customers' privacy will be a fundamental consideration."

In a similar tone, Dorothy Attwood, senior vice president of public policy and chief privacy officer at AT&T, told the Senate Commerce Committee that "AT&T does not today engage in online behavioral advertising, but we understand the uniquely sensitive nature of this practice," and ensured that AT&T would not track users’ information for the purposes of targeted advertising "without an affirmative, advance action by the consumer that is based on a clear explanation of how the consumer's action will affect the use of her information." Neither Attwood nor Stern made any mention of tracking their customers’ browsing for any other purposes.

This issue was brought to attention by Rep. Edward Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat and chairman of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on telecom and the Internet, who pressed this summer for companies to require an opt-in behavioral advertising policy. Thirty-three major companies were called to offer details about their online advertising practices. Most of them denied any invasive practices.

The Consumer Reports National Research Center published a poll on Thursday which showed that 43% of U.S. citizens incorrectly believe that a court order is required to monitor their online activities, and another 48% believe, also incorrectly, that their express consent is required if companies wish to use personal information they have collected about users’ online activities.

Critics have expressed their concerns that today’s announcement is only a token move, as warnings could be worded in such a way as to convince people to opt-in without full awareness of the nature of the advertising.

According to Jeff Chester of the Center for Digital Democracy "What they should be saying is, 'We are going to be collecting every move of your mouse on every Web site on a second-by-second basis.' But that would scare too many people away. They're going to craft some kind of proposal that claims to be informed consent but simply gives them political cover while they engage in full frontal behavioral targeting."