Web users develop a taste for cookies
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US-- Web cookies are valuable tools for tracking the browsing habits of internet users – and for that reason consumers have long been suspicious of them. However, a new survey suggests people are softening their attitudes to the little data files.
In the study by InsightExpress, 41% of respondents said they felt cookies were important to their overall internet experience – up from 35% last year and 30% in 2005.
The continued upward trend is perhaps surprising, given the attention that has been focused on behavioural targeting and online privacy in recent weeks.
Drew Lipner, who heads the agency's digital media measurement group, said the steady improvement in attitudes showed industry efforts to educate consumers were paying off.
Asked why they felt cookies were important, respondents mentioned themes such as efficiency and customisation. For example, stored cookies help bypass the login process on sites where a person has already registered, and they can be used to remember the preferences a person has for how a site looks or what functionaility they have access to.
But 47% of respondents still attempt to delete their cookies on a weekly basis, with the most common reason for deletion given as “general computer clean up”.
Cookie deletion can lead website owners to overstate their unique user counts, as more than one cookie will be created and assigned to the same person.
However Lipner says deletion is “far less prevalent than most of us would believe”. The InsightExpress survey found just 30% of respondents were able to delete cookies effectively.
Author: Brian Tarran
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