

Do-Not-Track Movement is Drawing Advertisers' Fire - bgruber
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/14/technology/do-not-track-movement-is-drawing-advertisers-fire.html

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001sky
_The advent of [DNT] threatens the barter system wherein consumers allow sites
and third-party ad networks to collect information about their online
activities in exchange for open access to maps, e-mail, games, music, social
networks and whatnot_

This narrative about a "quid-pro-quo" social contact is _completely
manufactured_. All of this <sharing> was part of online culture before the
cookie, and in particilar widespread privacy invasion of pixel tracking and
the rest. Ie, it's ex-post rationalization by those who have a stake in the
outcome.

Was the cookie the <worst> decision ever in the history of the internet? The
Barter System? WAT?

~~~
cico71
Indeed. Even if there was such a contract, who fixed the price for it? In
other words: who said that the right price/service in exchange for an
incredibly precise audit trail of my behavior is targeted ads or some pretty
lame free articles?

I paid my Navigon app, I pay for my Office 365 e-mail, I pay for the music I
get, I pay for the local newspaper I read, I pay to access academia papers
(i.e. ACM), I pay for a lot of tools many of which on a donor contract.

I don't even have a problem to pay a fee for a social site if I believe it
gives me value in exchange.

Let's forge the contract in a different way: you want my data, you offer
something in exchange, I decide if that's a good deal for me. If not, I may
still decide to give you my data, but you pay.

