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If you are strict with this argument, there would also be no free internet sites to visit. I don't need to use any of Googles services to be tracked by Google,

If you are strict with this argument, there would also be no free internet sites to visit. I don't need to use any of Googles services to be tracked by Google, although Facebook is probably the largest offender here. In social networks, friends of mine have shared my contact information without me even knowing it. So other people might pay with your data. And I believe the text is correct. You would pay and be tracked. Companies found out that the mass of users is pretty uncritical and if they are allowed to do it, they will do it. Also, websites could be financed through advertising that doesn't rely on tracking. A simple policy change and you blow a lot of mostly useless ad company out of the water. I think that would be good.

asplake 5y ago
Websites are financed by people and organisations with all kinds of motivations and business models. Websites don’t all have to make a profit! It is totally unfair (not to mention nonsensical) to represent the above argument as leading to the inevitable conclusion that there would be no free websites.
JohnFen 5y ago
> If you are strict with this argument, there would also be no free internet sites to visit. This is demonstrably untrue, as demonstrated by the fact that there were tons of useful free sites before advertising was even realistically possible, and there are still quite a lot of useful free sites now. Also, I take issue with calling ad-supported things "free". They aren't free at all -- you're just paying with a different form of currency. > websites could be financed through advertising that doesn't rely on tracking. This would remove roughly 95% of my problems with the modern web and online services.
SCNP 5y ago
To add to your 3rd point, your friends (and possibly you) may have shared yours and other's contact information without them even knowing it. As you said, Facebook is one of the worst offenders of grabbing all the contacts in a phone without the user's knowledge...
- fartcannon 5y ago
  Microsoft's LinkedIn is also atrocious at stuff like that.

asplake 5y ago

Websites are financed by people and organisations with all kinds of motivations and business models. Websites don’t all have to make a profit! It is totally unfair (not to mention nonsensical) to represent the above argument as leading to the inevitable conclusion that there would be no free websites.

JohnFen 5y ago

> If you are strict with this argument, there would also be no free internet sites to visit. This is demonstrably untrue, as demonstrated by the fact that there were tons of useful free sites before advertising was even realistically possible, and there are still quite a lot of useful free sites now. Also, I take issue with calling ad-supported things "free". They aren't free at all -- you're just paying with a different form of currency. > websites could be financed through advertising that doesn't rely on tracking. This would remove roughly 95% of my problems with the modern web and online services.

SCNP 5y ago

To add to your 3rd point, your friends (and possibly you) may have shared yours and other's contact information without them even knowing it. As you said, Facebook is one of the worst offenders of grabbing all the contacts in a phone without the user's knowledge...

fartcannon 5y ago
Microsoft's LinkedIn is also atrocious at stuff like that.