Recently, the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), a non-profit profit organization representing participants in the mobile marketing industry, released a privacy policy framework for mobile applications.  Although framed as a model privacy policy, the MMA Privacy and Advocacy Committee makes clear that the document is intended to be a “starting point” rather than a verbatim model.  Its hope is that the document will “encourage the mobile application developer community to continue to move consumer privacy interests forward.”

Disclosures recommended by the model fall into the following categories:

  • Information collected and its use
  • Collection of precise real time location information
  • Disclosure to third parties
  • Automatic data collection and advertising
  • Opt-out rights (including, at minimum, uninstallation)
  • Data retention policy
  • Policy with respect to children
  • Security
  • Changes to the policy
  • Consent
  • Contact information

The model does not make any recommendations on how best to display privacy policy information on mobile devices’ small screens, an issue that has posed challenges for many industry participants.  According to MediaPost, the framework will be the first of a number of privacy policy papers the MMA plans to release.  If you have any questions about the MMA guidelines or developing a privacy policy for a mobile application, please contact us.