Sorry, but that scarlet letter
doesn't match any of my suits

In the wake of Congressional inquiries about behavioral targeting and privacy, ISPs CenturyTel and Embarq have publicly distanced themselves from NebuAd.

The news follows Charter's decision to hold off on a planned pilot of NebuAd's services.

"NebuAd and its ISP partners are … working together to refine a rollout plan … for each ISP … to set the standard for privacy protection in [online advertising]," said NebuAd CEO Bob Dykes.

"NebuAd looks forward to a continued open dialogue with legislators, regulators, and the advocacy community."

NebuAd partners with ISPs to serve advertising based on consumers' search and site visiting data. A recent report by the Free Press claimed this model violates "fundamental expectations of internet privacy."

ISPs' interest in behavioral targeting was pinpointed in January, when they were said to be collecting data on customers for advertising purposes. At the time, there were no apparent third parties assisting them.