Google has updated its terms of service (TOS) today. Basically, the company has updates its TOS to let customers know just how they plan on using your profile photo and name to sell things better for advertisers and in product reviews. The short explanation, they’re hoping to be Facebook.
From The Updated TOS:
We want to give you – and your friends and connections – the most useful information. Recommendations from people you know can really help. So your friends, family and others may see your Profile name and photo, and content like the reviews you share or the ads you +1’d. This only happens when you take an action (things like +1’ing, commenting or following) – and the only people who see it are the people you’ve chosen to share that content with. On Google, you’re in control of what you share. This update to our Terms of Service doesn’t change in any way who you’ve shared things with in the past or your ability to control who you want to share things with in the future.
Remember when people got paid a commision for helping to sell things to people? Yah, that’s not something Google will be doing. Instead, they’ll be letting you pimp out products to your friends, use you and your clout to influence them, make a sale because of you, and collect all the cold hard cash monies.
Just calling a spade a spade. Just because everyone’s doing it (e.g. Facebook) doesn’t mean it isn’t scumbaggery on the highest of levels. Oh wait, what’s that, you can turn off the feature? Yah, Google gives you the tools to opt-out, knowing full well that no one will except the tech geeks.
Another aside, when was the last time you saw this kind of thing from Apple?
Photo Credit: Kalexanderson (cc)
