3 ms·

Should Gmail, Yahoo, and Hotmail block Facebook?

38 points by mqt 19y ago

barns 19y ago
My view is: if it's something I'm allowed to do manually, then I should be allowed to use a tool to help me do it faster. I don't agree with FB blocking Scoble, nor do I agree that Gmail should block FB.
- jsnx 19y ago
  Technically speaking, the TOS allows Google to kick any user who gets their stuff from Facebook This would be bad for Facebook, but it would be bad for Google and Yahoo, too: they would anger their users by frustrating a reasonable use of their service. Those users might just take their email and leave. Is the same true for Facebook? If you get kicked from Facebook, where else will you go? You might say "I'll just take my friends and start my own Facebook!", but you won't be able to unless you somehow got around their monitoring. (Not a difficult problem in principal, but tough for the non-savvy.) Would a service that exports Facebook contacts be illegal? What about a piece of software that does so?
- mojuba 19y ago
  Absolutely, the line between "manual" and "automated" actions is blurred. For example, is entering text using some voice recognition software automated or manual? They could as well demand in their TOS not to look over your shoulder when entering text in their form. Many of those terms we agree to in the digital world are nonsensical.
reitzensteinm 19y ago
My opinion: I'm a live by the sword, die by the sword kind of guy. I don't really find anything wrong with an option to mine other sources for data, and I'm sure I could find some way to justify (to myself) locking out mining from a site of my own, but there's no way I'd do both. I'm not even sure it makes business sense (most unethical practices don't in the long run). While a massive shift away from Facebook could happen (ala Friendster), Facebook would do far better trying to raise their value to users and solidify their status as a platform to prevent that from happening.
- Xichekolas 19y ago
  They could raise their value to users by making the user's own data available to him in handy formats. It'd be really nice to import all my contact's birthdays into my Google Calendar for instance... But then again, they might construe that to mean I'd visit less often. (The reality is that I'd just notice more birthdays.)
davidw 19y ago
One difference might be: FB snarfing data from Google involves a few hits on the Google site. Spidering a site rapidly involves a lot more traffic. Not that FB can't handle it, but it's a little different.
anamax 19y ago
I'm confused. Is FB stopping Scoble from exporting data that he put into FB or is it stopping him from exporting data that FB collected itself? Yes, it's likely to be a mix. However, if I gave FB some data, I'd be annoyed if FB let Scoble export it without my permission.
ojbyrne 19y ago
The "get your contacts from external sites" script may be a violation of the other TOSs, but more importantly it's a violation of your contacts' privacy. They didn't say you could give their info to facebook.
sethjohn 19y ago
All this talk about the Terms Of Service agreements misses the fundamental point that it's what people CAN DO (technologically) and what they WILL DO (including breaking rules) that determines how this will unfold...not whatever is written in small print in the Facebook TOS.
tlrobinson 19y ago
The obvious reasoning behind this policy is to prevent spam. But of course you only have access to your friends' email addresses.

38 points by mqt 19y ago

barns 19y ago

My view is: if it's something I'm allowed to do manually, then I should be allowed to use a tool to help me do it faster. I don't agree with FB blocking Scoble, nor do I agree that Gmail should block FB.

jsnx 19y ago
Technically speaking, the TOS allows Google to kick any user who gets their stuff from Facebook This would be bad for Facebook, but it would be bad for Google and Yahoo, too: they would anger their users by frustrating a reasonable use of their service. Those users might just take their email and leave. Is the same true for Facebook? If you get kicked from Facebook, where else will you go? You might say "I'll just take my friends and start my own Facebook!", but you won't be able to unless you somehow got around their monitoring. (Not a difficult problem in principal, but tough for the non-savvy.) Would a service that exports Facebook contacts be illegal? What about a piece of software that does so?
mojuba 19y ago
Absolutely, the line between "manual" and "automated" actions is blurred. For example, is entering text using some voice recognition software automated or manual? They could as well demand in their TOS not to look over your shoulder when entering text in their form. Many of those terms we agree to in the digital world are nonsensical.

reitzensteinm 19y ago

My opinion: I'm a live by the sword, die by the sword kind of guy. I don't really find anything wrong with an option to mine other sources for data, and I'm sure I could find some way to justify (to myself) locking out mining from a site of my own, but there's no way I'd do both. I'm not even sure it makes business sense (most unethical practices don't in the long run). While a massive shift away from Facebook could happen (ala Friendster), Facebook would do far better trying to raise their value to users and solidify their status as a platform to prevent that from happening.

Xichekolas 19y ago
They could raise their value to users by making the user's own data available to him in handy formats. It'd be really nice to import all my contact's birthdays into my Google Calendar for instance... But then again, they might construe that to mean I'd visit less often. (The reality is that I'd just notice more birthdays.)

davidw 19y ago

One difference might be: FB snarfing data from Google involves a few hits on the Google site. Spidering a site rapidly involves a lot more traffic. Not that FB can't handle it, but it's a little different.

anamax 19y ago

I'm confused. Is FB stopping Scoble from exporting data that he put into FB or is it stopping him from exporting data that FB collected itself? Yes, it's likely to be a mix. However, if I gave FB some data, I'd be annoyed if FB let Scoble export it without my permission.

ojbyrne 19y ago

The "get your contacts from external sites" script may be a violation of the other TOSs, but more importantly it's a violation of your contacts' privacy. They didn't say you could give their info to facebook.

sethjohn 19y ago

All this talk about the Terms Of Service agreements misses the fundamental point that it's what people CAN DO (technologically) and what they WILL DO (including breaking rules) that determines how this will unfold...not whatever is written in small print in the Facebook TOS.

tlrobinson 19y ago

The obvious reasoning behind this policy is to prevent spam. But of course you only have access to your friends' email addresses.