The story of how some of the country’s leading civil society advocates came to lose faith in the White House’s privacy initiative does not follow the typical plot of Washington gridlock. It is a tale of clashing visions for American society and commerce. And it provides an instructive preview of looming battles among government agencies for control over industries like drones, smartphones and gadgets yet to come.

The ability of companies to freely amass and analyze the personal details of consumers also provides a counterpoint to the current fight between Apple and the F.B.I., in which Apple says it wants to protect consumer information from government snoops.

In 2009, the Federal Trade Commission began looking more deeply at online services, advertising networks and data brokers that harvest consumers’ information in order to tailor services and market to them. Federal regulators said they were concerned that certain data-driven technologies were outstripping the ability of consumers to manage how companies were using their personal details.

At issue was not the classical notion of “privacy” as the right to keep out prying eyes.

When people freely search and share their personal concerns online, their data footprints can leave clues about their most intimate health worries, family matters and financial difficulties. Regulators warned that companies could use those details to narrowly categorize consumers, potentially leading to inferior or unfair treatment.

“The free availability of this information can cause harm in a variety of ways,” said Jessica L. Rich, director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.