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In most walks of life we happily pay for something that provides us value: Cars, phones, shoes etc. I don't see the web/app ecosystem as any different although

In most walks of life we happily pay for something that provides us value: Cars, phones, shoes etc. I don't see the web/app ecosystem as any different although owners (that's app creators and web site owners/creators) feel they can make more by selling our lives to a third party - That's not something I want to happen with my details I will block your system for doing so. If I feel your site/app is not providing me with value then I likely will uninstall/never come back. It's a choice thing. I have paid for apps in the past and will continue to do so in the future but only for stuff that brings me real value. I may not be the biggest supporter out there but I have a couple of Patreon's running (is that the right term?) for people that provide me with value. Let's face it, there is a whole load of shite content out there... so maybe we need to cull the herd a bit. Anyway, you can run a website for almost nothing these days and spending, say, $50 a month will get you some serious hosting solutions so if your business is just exploiting my browsing habits and selling my metadata on then I will happily grab the popcorn and watch your site burn.

blahi 10y ago
Yeah, yeah, yeah, google and facebook are almost charcoal now.
nxzero 10y ago
Curious, given how strongly you feel about the commercial use of personally identifiable information (pii) - how do you feel about the collection, use, sharing, etc. of pii by governments?
- _Understated_ 10y ago
  I don't agree with Governments doing it en-mass (I have no problem with targetted surveillance based on reasonable suspicion) and I have signed various petitions to that effect over the years. The only real option, apart from revolution, is to move to another country that doesn't do it but I don't think there is one now. Of bigger concern is that I am in the minority: Most of my circle believe in the terrorist/paedo rhetoric the Government spins and think its justifiable. As for the commercial stuff, my only problem is if I can't avoid it or I really have to go out of my way to avoid it but so far my tinfoil hat hasn't been breached, e.g. my wife has various loyalty cards but I don't want to carry one... I have that choice with commercial entities I'm in the UK btw.
  - nxzero 10y ago
    Thanks, don't like to assume things, and never really thought about if there are some people that're anti-commercial pii collection, but pro gov collection; as we both would likely agree, there probably are somewhere. As for me, I give out less (real) pii than 99.999% of the world, in part because even as a kid I knew how easy it was to find and use info. I don't know what the best way forward is to the topic, but the current situation seems problematic to me. Only real solution long-term is a positive & significant economic culture that values privacy; my opinion.
a3n 10y ago
I pay for access to NYT, Economist and Guardian. And I still block their ads. I expect them to eventually kick me out or charge more, because I'm sure my subscription fee isn't covering their profit goals. Even if I was paying full fee for these things to be dropped on my physical door step every day, there would still be ads, only they'd be static and safe.
- lsaferite 10y ago
  I have a visceral hate for advertising inside a product I pay money for (website, magazine, movie, etc). The only exception I've found to that being a product packaging including advertising for additional catalog items from the same manufacturer or retailer.
tomjen3 10y ago
The problem with that is that, at least for me, is that I no longer read any one newspaper. I read whatever is linked on HN, reddit, twitter, facebook. So no, I am not going to have a separate subscription for each. I had a subscription with the Economist, and that is the last time I will have a subscription for any newspaper, but I am willing to pay for a bundle that has substantially every publication the way Spotify has substantially every song, as long as I could pay with paypal, so that I knew I didn't have to pick up the phone to cancel. Other than that I just want a button to pay a couple cents to read just that article, no matter who has posted it. The second problem is that far too few people are willing to pay.

blahi 10y ago

Yeah, yeah, yeah, google and facebook are almost charcoal now.

nxzero 10y ago

Curious, given how strongly you feel about the commercial use of personally identifiable information (pii) - how do you feel about the collection, use, sharing, etc. of pii by governments?

_Understated_ 10y ago
I don't agree with Governments doing it en-mass (I have no problem with targetted surveillance based on reasonable suspicion) and I have signed various petitions to that effect over the years. The only real option, apart from revolution, is to move to another country that doesn't do it but I don't think there is one now. Of bigger concern is that I am in the minority: Most of my circle believe in the terrorist/paedo rhetoric the Government spins and think its justifiable. As for the commercial stuff, my only problem is if I can't avoid it or I really have to go out of my way to avoid it but so far my tinfoil hat hasn't been breached, e.g. my wife has various loyalty cards but I don't want to carry one... I have that choice with commercial entities I'm in the UK btw.
- nxzero 10y ago
  Thanks, don't like to assume things, and never really thought about if there are some people that're anti-commercial pii collection, but pro gov collection; as we both would likely agree, there probably are somewhere. As for me, I give out less (real) pii than 99.999% of the world, in part because even as a kid I knew how easy it was to find and use info. I don't know what the best way forward is to the topic, but the current situation seems problematic to me. Only real solution long-term is a positive & significant economic culture that values privacy; my opinion.

a3n 10y ago

I pay for access to NYT, Economist and Guardian. And I still block their ads. I expect them to eventually kick me out or charge more, because I'm sure my subscription fee isn't covering their profit goals. Even if I was paying full fee for these things to be dropped on my physical door step every day, there would still be ads, only they'd be static and safe.

lsaferite 10y ago
I have a visceral hate for advertising inside a product I pay money for (website, magazine, movie, etc). The only exception I've found to that being a product packaging including advertising for additional catalog items from the same manufacturer or retailer.

tomjen3 10y ago

The problem with that is that, at least for me, is that I no longer read any one newspaper. I read whatever is linked on HN, reddit, twitter, facebook. So no, I am not going to have a separate subscription for each. I had a subscription with the Economist, and that is the last time I will have a subscription for any newspaper, but I am willing to pay for a bundle that has substantially every publication the way Spotify has substantially every song, as long as I could pay with paypal, so that I knew I didn't have to pick up the phone to cancel. Other than that I just want a button to pay a couple cents to read just that article, no matter who has posted it. The second problem is that far too few people are willing to pay.