Through qualitative analysis of the policies of two major global information intermediaries — Google and Microsoft — and related case studies, this paper demonstrates a) that intermediaries’ participation in self-regulatory programmes and implementation of privacy principles does not necessarily translate into meaningful privacy safeguards for users in the face of growing private surveillance capacity; and b) that within the EU and US self-regulatory frameworks, information intermediaries have discretionary power to set their policies and practices prioritising strategic interests over privacy commitments. Discussions in this paper complement existing studies on the implementation of privacy principles stipulated in Fair Information Practices (FIPs) by enhancing understanding about the role of information intermediaries in defining privacy conditions of users within self-regulation.

中文翻译：

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信息中介通过自我监管的隐私作用

通过对两个主要的全球信息中介机构（Google和Microsoft）的政策进行定性分析以及相关案例研究，本文证明a）中介机构参与自我监管计划和实施隐私原则并不一定会转化为有意义的隐私保护措施面对日益增长的私人监视能力的用户；b）在欧盟和美国的自我监管框架内，信息中介机构拥有酌处权，可以制定其政策和做法，将战略利益优先于隐私承诺。