> If this new feature is so great, people will see it and turn it on, why force it down on the user? Because they're trying to expand the way they monetize the

> If this new feature is so great, people will see it and turn it on, why force it down on the user? Because they're trying to expand the way they monetize their user base and they suspect that most people won't give a shit either way. So if you're looking to roll out this new thing that you think will be more useful to your customers (advertisers), you want maximum value from your product (users). So, on by default. A few people will complain and threaten to leave Google services, nothing will come of it, and Google expands the sophistication of it's core money generation platform.