Two powerful House members asked Charter Communications Friday to
put a hold on its plans to monitor its customers' web habits in order
to serve them targeted ads, questioning whether the scheme complies
with federal privacy laws.

In a letter
(.pdf) to Charter CEO Neil Smit, Massachusetts Democrat Edward Markey
and Texas Republican Joe Barton asked if the company's plan would
violate the Communications Act -- which puts strict limits on what cable companies can do with customer records. Charter intends to eavesdrop on what customers type into a search box
and what sites they visit. in order to create profiles of their
interests. The company, which will make money from the venture, says
customers will benefit from the plan.

But the congressmen are not so sure. "Any service to which a
subscriber does not affirmatively subscribe and that can result in the
collection of information about the web-related habits and interests of
a subscriber [...] raises substantial questions," the pair wrote.

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