Washington - Following news this week that broadband ISP Charter Communications (NASD: CHTR) was planning to begin tracking its subscribers' Web surfing habits in order to serve them targeted ads, two prominent U.S. lawmakers have called on the company to delay the move, as it may violate federal privacy laws, CNET News.com reported.

Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), chair of the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, and Joe Barton (R-Texas), co-chair of the Congressional Privacy Caucus and ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, asked Charter CEO Neil Smit in a letter to "not move forward" with the plan until "we have an opportunity to discuss it."

While Charter's plan would give customers a means of opting-out of receiving targeted ads, it has not yet addressed whether or not they will also be able to opt-out of being tracked.

The Congressmen believe the law may require Charter to operate the service on a completely opt-in basis.

Related Links:
http://www.news.com/8301-13578_3-9945903-38.html

http://snipurl.com/2980r (DMW previous coverage)

http://www.charter.net