3 ms·
If you aren't buying a product, you are the product. That's worth drilling into your head. Yes, that means that User = product from HN's perspective, but I am
by einhverfr 14y ago
If you aren't buying a product, you are the product.
That's worth drilling into your head.
Yes, that means that User = product from HN's perspective, but I am willing to bet it is a lot more of a complex connection than it is with facebook ;-)
- icebraining 14y agoI didn't buy my copy of Debian, yet they treat me better than many companies I pay. I pay for cable, yet I still get advertising. That "not paying means you're the product" is a nice sound bite, but it doesn't actually mean anything.
- einhverfr 14y agoI never said that's a bad thing. But at least with the open source software I work with, if you use the software, great. Maybe you will come to me for services later. I wonder how many Debian-involved businesses have such a model. Paying for media is an interesting exception. Very often for newspapers, etc, you are both buying a product and becoming a product. But in the end it's a good warning to know the business model of those you get free stuff from.
- tomrod 14y agoThe tm is "multi-sided market" in the economics literature. We're only beginning to figure them out.
- genwin 14y agoIt seems the "not paying means you're the product" is short for "not paying a for-profit company means you're the product".