Data privacy is all the rage and people want to have an internet where companies need permission to sell your data and where you can use the FREE service without letting them tell advertisers what you actually like.

There are only 2 possible models for the internet

  1. A free internet where websites, browsers and search engines make money by selling your data to companies who want to sell their products to users.

  2. A subscription based internet where you companies don’t use your data but charge a fee to use a specific website, browser or search engine.

I can guarantee that all these people complaining about “muh privacy” would not like having a paywall restricted internet.

  • considerealization@lemmy.caEnglish
    14·
    2 days ago

    That looks very much like a false dichotomy to me. You left out:

    • advertising (which does not require selling data, this is just an invasive additive)
    • donation and volunteer based (Wikipedia does this quite successfully)
    • funded from tax income (as are online government services, crown corporations etc.)
    • companies that sell something thru the internet l, and website is an advertising or pm selling platform. This accounts for most sites, tbh, from brands to retailers, to marketplaces like Amazon, Etsy, and Craigslist.

    These are just off the top of my head. But the point being is that your major premise of obviously false.

    Most companies that are harvesting our data are also requiring or pushing for subscriptions now, so the dichotomy is also false in that respect.

    Finally, it is clear that millions of people are quite happy to pay reasonable fees for valuable services, which is why so many fee based companies are doing fine.

    • Sackeshi@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      19·
      2 days ago

      When is the last time ads on a website were completely random and not at least relevant to you?

      donation and volunteer based (Wikipedia does this quite successfully) funded from tax income (as are online government services, crown corporations etc.)

      Fair point, Wiki is an outlier in that regaurd and also .org not a .com/.net

      I’d count taxes as subscription albeit you don’t get a choice

      companies that sell something thru the internet l, and website is an advertising or pm selling platform. This accounts for most sites, tbh, from brands to retailers, to marketplaces like Amazon, Etsy, and Craigslist.

      I should have specified non commercial sites.

      • gonzo-rand19@moist.catsweat.com
        15·
        2 days ago

        When is the last time ads on a website were completely random and not at least relevant to you?

        Earlier today, because I block cookies, ads, tracking, etc.

        I should have specified non commercial sites.

        So you know you’re cherry-picking to justify your weirdo pro-corporate opinion, then.

        • Sackeshi@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
          111·
          2 days ago

          Good on you.

          I’m not pro coporate I’m pro free internet, if I can connect to it I can use it free.

          • gonzo-rand19@moist.catsweat.com
            9·
            2 days ago

            Don’t you think it’s hypocritical to say that you think people should freely give their data to companies so that they can finance their websites while also saying that me avoiding tracking and ads is a good thing?

            If you want to be consistent, you can’t also support bypassing the method by which you’re contending that the internet sustains itself.

            • Sackeshi@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
              16·
              2 days ago

              No because if you are willing to go through the hassle to get around it then thats fine, until it becomes a big enough issue, I use adblocker, I am simply saying, use my Data so I don’t pay with money that I and the majority of people can’t afford

              • gonzo-rand19@moist.catsweat.com
                4·
                2 days ago

                Can you articulate why it’s fine “until it becomes a big enough issue”?

                When does it become a big enough issue? Why is it okay for companies and web administrators to lose out on an unquantified portion of the revenue that you say that they are owed in exchange for their services?