The Children's Advertising Review Unit (CARU) and the Toy Industry Association (TIA) have teamed up to bring parents an updated Parent's Guide to Advertising and children. This free guide helps parents understand and discuss advertising when it comes to their children. It provides strategies to teach kids about the purpose of advertising, how to differentiate between different types of marketing as well as how to identify it. To download a free copy to help teach your children about advertising visit TIA's website by clicking here .

CARU's annual conference went off without a hitch last week. Expert panelists explored challenging issues facing the children's marketing and advertising industry. The discussions ranged from the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act's impact on mobile and smart toy technologies to social media to drafting and negotiating strategies when working with children's properties.  CARU was thrilled to host Federal Trade Commissioner, Terrell McSweeny for a fireside chat with Lee Peeler as the keynote speaker. The Commissioner discussed her opinions about the FTC's position on many issues relating to children's marketing and also weighed in about concerns prompted by European Court of Justice's recommendation that the safe harbor agreement that governs data between the U.S. and EU should be struck down.  We had a full house filled with some of the best and the brightest in the business. We'll be back again next year with another great progr...

Time is running out! The CARU Conference is next week, September 30th. And guess what? This year we've got complimentary Wi-Fi for all attendees! The NAD Conference is already sold out but we still have some remaining seats. FTC Commissioner, Terrell McSweeny will be there discussing children's marketing. We also have Miry Kim from the FTC who will be discussing all your questions about COPPA. Plus many more great speakers. Click HERE to see the agenda. Click HERE to learn more information about the can't miss marketing event for anyone in the children's space.

The FTC completed a new survey to examine what disclosures are being made about children's apps privacy practices and interactive features like links to social media. The FTC found that of the 364 apps they reviewed (in both Google Play and Apple Store) that 45% of them (164 of the apps) had privacy policies that could be viewed from a direct link on the app store page. Additionally, 38 of the apps had privacy policies in harder-to-find places such as the app developer's website and another 48 of the apps included some form of disclosures within the app itself about sharing of personal information. To read more about the FTC's findings, visit its website . For inquiries about becoming a CARU Safe Harbor, please contact Wayne Keeley at wkeeley@caru.bbb.org or (212) 705-0112.

Efforts are underway internationally by both the the Federal Trade Commission and 27 members of the Global Privacy Enforcement Network (GPEN), a group of privacy enforcement agencies around the world, to protect children's online privacy. Studies by the FTC in 2012 found that many apps and websites weren't arming parents with the information they needed to make informed decisions about protecting their children's privacy. The FTC, in conjunction with privacy experts from the FTC's Office of Technology and Research and Investigation have started an initiative to analyze privacy disclosures, interactive features and information collection practices of children’s mobile apps. Findings are expected to be released before the end of the year.  Businesses looking for guidance on how to comply with COPPA can reach out to CARU, which is the FTC's first COPPA-approved Safe Harbor program. To learn more, please contact Jay Black [jblack@caru.bbb.org/(212) 705-0111] or Wa...

CARU's Annual Conference is just around the corner so mark those calendars for September 30, 2015 ! It's one of the most well-attended conferences in the industry about marketing to children and you don't want to miss it!  Expert panelists will explore the challenging issues facing companies that advertise to children.  There will be a sharp focus on mobile and online technologies and how they have changed the way companies market products, both in the US and abroad. A significant emphasis will be placed on the modifications to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the Federal Trade Commission’s revisions to the COPPA Rule, including discussions on how companies are implementing new practices to comply with these changes in their online and mobile marketing. To register, please click  here. To sponsor, please contact Reshma Persaud, 212.705.0113, rpersaud@asrc.bbb.org

CARU held its annual Supporter's Council Meeting at Davis & Gilbert LLP this week in New York City. The Supporter's Council Meeting is a chance for CARU's supporters to meet and discuss the latest developments in the industry and pressing issues that companies are being faced with. It's a chance to network with other industry professionals as well and learn how they're dealing with them. This year, we kicked off the day by revisiting the COPPA changes and discussed how they are continuing to affect the industry. Attendees had the chance to discuss the law's grey areas and their implications on business. CARU welcomed the feedback, which it plans to take to its ongoing discussions with the FTC about the law's more nuanced intricacies. Next, Jon Brescia from the Online Interest-Based Accountability Program spoke about evolving methods of online tracking such as cookie-less tracking on both desktop and mobile devices. Participants had a chance to learn...