Emily Turnage
Gamification of Social Media
In an article “Tech companies like Gmail, WhatsApp may be asked to store user information” for The Economic Times of India, Surabhi Agarwal describes a new movement toward data collection proposed by the Indian government. Under these new rules, email services and communication apps - among others - would be required to store data on their users, such as messages sent or received, or even personal information, for a set period of time. Of course, this movement has been met with opposition from these companies, citing difficult implementation and invasions of users’ privacy as primary reasons why many are speaking out against it.
Despite this sudden outcry, many data collection companies have already begun doing so. Acxiom in particular is an data marketing firm that offers information - including browsing habits, and ways of identifying what type of consumer a user is, from “potential inheritor”, “adult with senior parent” and “diabetic focused”. It then sells this information to companies for a profit, sometimes without the knowledge or consent of the users whose information it is selling. It’s easy to think of all of this as horrifying - a blight on our privacy, that some company is, in the words of Vienna Teng, “gathering every crumb you drop / these mindless decisions and moments you long forgot”. To be sure, the data collection and storage already done by Acxiom, and now proposed by the Indian government on the parts of messaging apps, is worrisome if the consumer has not given consent for their information to be stored in such a way. But - since it’s already happening, and comparatively little can be done about the information that’s already out there, perhaps it’s also important to look at the benefits data collection may have for us. For example, in an article for Business Insider, the vice president of Macy’s customer strategy division describes responsible data usage as such: "Consumers are worried about our use of data, but they're pissed if I don't deliver relevance. … How am I supposed to deliver relevance and magically deliver what they want if I don't look at the data?" Being able to examine consumer data in order to provide relevance in advertising and products is a convenience that many consumers may take for granted when lobbying for increased privacy. It’s a delicate balance that needs to be struck between collecting enough data in order to give customers the products that they want, and advertising that will interest them, but also not infringing on customers’ personal rights to privacy.
1 Comment
Laura Chavez
3/5/2017 03:41:57 pm
I think it will be hard for companies to find the balance between keeping the customers happy and keeping their privacy safe. Although I notice customers complain about not knowing what is done with their privacy, a lot of the time companies say what they are doing with the data they collect when the customer uses their services. I just think that customers don't read the terms and conditions when signing up for a service. It's an issue that has to be fixed for both sides.
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AuthorI am a senior studying Communication Design, with an emphasis in Game Design. I like playing video games, writing, and yelling too loudly about things I care about. Archives
May 2017
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