Who owns the online consumer?

Powerful emerging technologies, fierce competition in the marketplace, more sophisticated consumers and the relentless drive for higher corporate earnings are at the root of online consumers’ information privacy concerns. The issue of consumer privacy could be a defining element in the battle for the ownership of online consumers. Businesses have a choice in how they respond to this matter. They can see it as a threat and simply react defensively. Or they can treat this as an opportunity and be proactive in maximizing the gains. Clearly, businesses that add value to their offerings by leveraging Internet technology in coordination with a proactive policy to preserve consumer privacy will be the success stories of the future. The goal of this research is to identify the strategic and tactical opportunities created by online consumers’ privacy concerns. Approaches to treating the privacy concerns as a source of competitive advantage are clearly discussed.