Comments on: Facebook Beacon: Not what I signed up for

By: VentureBeat » Do Facebook users care about “privacy issues?” What about Doubleclick?

Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:33:40 +0000

[...] Here’s one report about none of the above opt-out options working. It’s not clear why this person has had a [...]

By: aweissman

aweissman — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 18:23:03 +0000

So the collection of the data does not bother as much as the broadcast of it (the broadcast is what I personally find offensive). We also need to recognize that, even if explicit broadcast is not occurring, that implicit data collection is occurring, and is that an acceptable price for these free services?

By: John

John — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 16:00:10 +0000

AW / My issues are a lack of transparency re: terms, pushing the burden to the user (as Jonathan says above) and the presumption that I want my “friends” on FB to see these purchases. Nxt time I opt to see Cheet and Chong’s greatest adventure maybe I dont want that broadcasted out on FB. Shouldnt it me my option to control whether I want something to be sent out or not.

By: aweissman

aweissman — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 15:11:32 +0000

JB:

Is your issue with the broadcasting of the purchase to your “friends” (loosely defined by Facebook)?

And if so, do you feel differently when this data is tracked, cookied, aggregated and then used to deliver ads to you, or other people, or other groups or sold as marketing info?

By: Jonathan Trenn

Jonathan Trenn — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 06:10:11 +0000

John

I don’t blame you one bit for being pissed. This thing amazes me. Your line “I felt there was a violation of commercial trust unlike I had experienced in a while. Yes I get spam, targeted behavioral ad’s but this is both more explicit and more of a violation of the compact that I thought I had with Facebook.” Says it all.

I blogged about this here: http://marketingconversation.com/2007/11/24/facebook-beacon-inst-in-the-users-interest-that-means-you/

I also took the task the companies that have signed up for this - Amazon, Overstock, Fandago. My thought was that when we buy something from an online retailer, we develop a relationship with them. A trusted relationship. Suddenly the retailer and Facebook have decided that Facebook is now in that relationship as well.

It is as if one buys an item at a local actual store and the owner then contacts the local newspaper with a press release describing what you bought. And if you get wind of it, you can contact the editor and stop the story.

The point is the requirement, the burden is on the customer, the user.

I also point out that while the concept itself is inherently an invasion of privacy, it can go further…

Renting Beowulf by itself is not embarrassing. But what if someone buys a book on something that they want to keep private…coming out of the closet or how to cope with a sexually transmitted disease. Suddenly, on Facebook, everyone knows.

You’re correct. The backlash will be big.