AOL set to unveil a do-not-track service

Most consumers are familiar with do-not-call lists, which are meant to keep telemarketers from phoning them. Soon people will be able to sign up for do-not-track lists, which will help shield their Web-surfing habits from the prying eyes of marketers.

Such lists will not reduce the number of ads people see online, but they will prevent advertisers from using their online meanderings to deliver specific ad pitches to them.

Today, the AOL division of Time Warner will announce a service of this type, which will be up and running by the end of the year. Other programs are likely to be articulated soon, as online advertisers prepare for a two-day forum on privacy hosted by the Federal Trade Commission.

AOL says it is setting up a website that will link consumers directly to opt-out lists run by the largest advertising networks. The site's technology will ensure that people's preferences are not erased later.

There is a silver lining for marketers, however: The AOL site will try to persuade people they should share some personal data to get pitches for products they might like. Most websites, including AOL, already collect data about users to send them specific ads - but AOL is choosing to become more open about the practice and will run advertisements about it in coming months.

Consumers who have already seen some benefits from online tracking systems - in the form of movie recommendations from Netflix, perhaps, or product recommendations from Amazon - might warm to AOL's argument.

"Instead of having interruptive ads, instead of jarring things that will grab your attention, things are hopefully tailored to be suitable to your experience," said Jules Polonetsky, the chief privacy officer for AOL.

Whether consumer privacy groups and other advertising companies agree with AOL's philosophy will become clearer tomorrow and Friday at the event put together by the FTC, the agency that monitors advertising for deceptive and unfair practices.