The amendments define a child as being under the age of 13 and require that marketers obtain the positive consent of a parent or guardian before a child's personal information can be collected, used or transferred. It is our belief that legislation and sectoral codes should work together a law to enforce a set of principles and industry codes to define them in practice. The need for a balanced bill We would respectfully suggest that it is possible in the proposed legislation to strike a balance between the protection of personal information and the promotion of economic growth. Recent demographic shifts in Canada have resulted in a different, sometimes more sophisticated consumer. The growth of families with two working parents, single parent families and an aging population has meant that more Canadians want to be able to shop from home using a variety of media.
Consumers expect tailored packages, convenience, and good customer service.
Marketers want to meet these expectations and respond but need customized information to do so. As a result, business is expanding the collection and use of customer information in order to identify and reach new clients, maintain existing relationships, pursue new opportunities and respond more quickly to demands for goods and services. It is important to point out that contrary to some commonly held beliefs, marketers do not build individual consumer files. This is not helpful for marketing purposes and is very cost-prohibitive. Our members are more interested in building a profile of a group - for example, golf enthusiasts or dog owners than creating individual profiles.