Comments on: Ohmigod, companies are tracking what we look at online! http://blog.myplaceinthecrowd.org/2008/03/10/ohmigod-companies-are-tracking-what-we-look-at-online/ The Common Data Project Blog Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:51:43 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.2 By: My Place in the Crowd » Blog Archive » Proposed legislation that gives people access to their own data http://blog.myplaceinthecrowd.org/2008/03/10/ohmigod-companies-are-tracking-what-we-look-at-online/#comment-6280 My Place in the Crowd » Blog Archive » Proposed legislation that gives people access to their own data Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:02:21 +0000 http://blog.myplaceinthecrowd.org/2008/03/10/ohmigod-companies-are-tracking-what-we-look-at-online/#comment-6280 [...] thought I thought this New York Times article on data collection wasn’t very informative, a New York legislator was sufficiently moved to propose this [...] […] thought I thought this New York Times article on data collection wasn’t very informative, a New York legislator was sufficiently moved to propose this […]

]]> By: Mimi Yin http://blog.myplaceinthecrowd.org/2008/03/10/ohmigod-companies-are-tracking-what-we-look-at-online/#comment-5831 Mimi Yin Tue, 11 Mar 2008 01:31:17 +0000 http://blog.myplaceinthecrowd.org/2008/03/10/ohmigod-companies-are-tracking-what-we-look-at-online/#comment-5831 A tangential but relevant question: Is advertising truly the most profitable use of all this data? Could it be that the treasure trove of personal information available to advertisers is *only* valuable to advertisers? Or perhaps, legal constraints around what kinds of personal information can be collected without the individual's knowledge or consent is limiting the kinds of data-driven products and services companies can offer. For example, companies aren't allowed to mix internal data sets for fear of learning "too much" about any particular customer or user. But I want to know about all this stuff that we're afraid to find out! I don't need to know exactly who's doing what and where they live. But I imagine that today's privacy policies result in huge lost opportunities for providing rich data-driven services. In other words, what if our very own privacy fears are keeping us trapped in a system that's main byproduct is more creative ways to advertise to people? Perhaps if companies would only give us more compelling examples of how our personal information could be re-purposed, more than 15% of us would be okay with giving it up. But therein lies the problem: Who's going to give it up first? A tangential but relevant question:

Is advertising truly the most profitable use of all this data?

Could it be that the treasure trove of personal information available to advertisers is *only* valuable to advertisers?

Or perhaps, legal constraints around what kinds of personal information can be collected without the individual’s knowledge or consent is limiting the kinds of data-driven products and services companies can offer. For example, companies aren’t allowed to mix internal data sets for fear of learning “too much” about any particular customer or user.

But I want to know about all this stuff that we’re afraid to find out! I don’t need to know exactly who’s doing what and where they live. But I imagine that today’s privacy policies result in huge lost opportunities for providing rich data-driven services.

In other words, what if our very own privacy fears are keeping us trapped in a system that’s main byproduct is more creative ways to advertise to people?

Perhaps if companies would only give us more compelling examples of how our personal information could be re-purposed, more than 15% of us would be okay with giving it up.

But therein lies the problem: Who’s going to give it up first?

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