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It is the very nature of online advertising to stalk usage behavior akin to spyware and be completely opaque about it. It is horribly subjective to single out

It is the very nature of online advertising to stalk usage behavior akin to spyware and be completely opaque about it. It is horribly subjective to single out Facebook for it when all online advertisers are basically doing the very same things. The only difference between Facebook and other ad agencies is that Facebook has a structured system in place inviting better PII and relationship data submitted directly by the users. While people demonize Facebook for this behavior other ad agencies would kill to be in that position.

AlexandrB 8y ago
> It is the very nature of online advertising to stalk usage behavior akin to spyware and be completely opaque about it. No, it's not. Online ad space is like any other ad space, and advertising has existed for decades with only minimal information about who views it. The only difference with online advertising is that there are no longer technological limitations to tracking everything. Something that's much harder to do with a billboard or a newspaper ad. Since Since this is the case, it's up to voters to insist on legal limits on tracking instead. But advertising will be fine either way.
- austincheney 8y ago
  Just because online advertising is different from billboards in that billboards don't stalk me doesn't in any ways redeem online advertising. I have worked that business before and written that code for Travelocity. I created Travelocity's most successful advertising code before they were consumed by Expedia (an annoying popunder that achieved click-through rates of 14%). I later worked as the developer on their analytics team and worked hand-in-hand with their media (advertising) team. The name of the game is experimentation and analysis. The more data you have on a user the more accurate and targeted your decisions can be about that user. Spyware is absolutely the name of the game.

AlexandrB 8y ago

> It is the very nature of online advertising to stalk usage behavior akin to spyware and be completely opaque about it. No, it's not. Online ad space is like any other ad space, and advertising has existed for decades with only minimal information about who views it. The only difference with online advertising is that there are no longer technological limitations to tracking everything. Something that's much harder to do with a billboard or a newspaper ad. Since Since this is the case, it's up to voters to insist on legal limits on tracking instead. But advertising will be fine either way.

austincheney 8y ago
Just because online advertising is different from billboards in that billboards don't stalk me doesn't in any ways redeem online advertising. I have worked that business before and written that code for Travelocity. I created Travelocity's most successful advertising code before they were consumed by Expedia (an annoying popunder that achieved click-through rates of 14%). I later worked as the developer on their analytics team and worked hand-in-hand with their media (advertising) team. The name of the game is experimentation and analysis. The more data you have on a user the more accurate and targeted your decisions can be about that user. Spyware is absolutely the name of the game.