Saturday 29 November 2014

Twitter scanning users' other apps to help deliver 'tailored content'

Title: Twitter scanning users' other apps to help deliver 'tailored content'




Summary:
This article is about how twitter has plans to scan other apps on the user’s smartphones; twitter explained this decision as an attempt to build twitter up as more personal experience, they state that they will be building up a list of apps in order to deliver tailored content. They also say that they will not be collecting data from the app. According to Twitter, it will use the data to provide better “who to follow” suggestions; to add “tweets, accounts, or other content to your timeline that we think you’ll find especially interesting”; and to boost its advertising business by “showing you more relevant promoted content”. There will be an option to turn the app graph off within the android/iOS apps.

Facts/Phrases:
Ø  The company reported $320m of advertising revenues in the third quarter of 2014 alone, with 85% of that coming from mobile ads. The more it can refine how they’re targeted, the more money it will make.

Opinion:
In my opinion, article addresses the issue of privacy and the difference between Twitter publicly announcing scanning the user’s others apps and Google and Apple scanning apps without permission, and notifying them after scanning the apps. The fact that Twitter is creating an app graph to tailor fit the user’s newsfeeds just to promote specific company’s products, but publicly announcing it is and informing the users that it can be turned off is a break from the previous app privacy controversies, where data had been collected without their knowledge.  


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