Self-Regulatory Group Taps FTC Official For Executive Director

The self-regulatory group Network Advertising Initiative has tapped Federal Trade Commission official Marc Groman to serve as executive director.

Groman replaces Charles Curran, who has held the position since April of 2009. Groman will start with the NAI in mid-December and will be based in Washington. Since launching 10 years ago, the NAI has operated a site for consumers who want to opt out of behavioral targeting by NAI members. But in the last year, the Digital Advertising Alliance -- a larger self-regulatory group that includes the major ad trade associations as well as the NAI -- started operating an opt-out page. The DAA has also drafted new self-regulatory principles and launched an enforcement program that has drawn praise from the FTC. Rob Gratchner, chairman of the NAI's Board, says Groman will help the organization develop a strategy for moving forward. Among other potential changes, Gratchner says the NAI under Groman's leadership could extend itself to privacy advocates to a greater extent than in the past.