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467 points bundie | 9 comments | | HN request time: 0.915s | source | bottom
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bix6 ◴[] No.44501849[source]
These big tech companies are so frustrating. Why does every single aspect of our digital lives need to be monitored? It’s like whack a mole trying to get the most basic of privacy.
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saubeidl ◴[] No.44501894[source]
Because that way they can build profiles of you and use them to manipulate you into buying junk you don't need. That, in turn, makes the line go up and the share holders happy.

That's tech capitalism in a nutshell.

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1. RiverCrochet ◴[] No.44501905[source]
Why do I keep getting ads for stuff I can't afford then?
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2. dylan604 ◴[] No.44501928[source]
How else are you going to keep up with the Joneses? They are just looking out for your social wellbeing
3. pengaru ◴[] No.44502032[source]
> Why do I keep getting ads for stuff I can't afford then?

You must be new here, have you not yet unlocked the wonders of credit card debt?

4. ozgrakkurt ◴[] No.44502035[source]
Work more so you can buy more
5. bakugo ◴[] No.44502087[source]
Get with the times, grandpa. Thanks to the wonders of buy-now-pay-later services, we don't have to worry about that anymore, just stop thinking and consume!
6. jfyi ◴[] No.44502112[source]
I largely get ads for things I already have bought. Otherwise, it's really general demographic stuff that doesn't strike a chord.

I assume it's because I don't really browse for buyables unless I have the intent of buying something immediately. On a personal level, I fail entirely to understand the value proposition in web advertising.

7. bonoboTP ◴[] No.44502275[source]
So that when you see all that stuff you can't afford on the neighbor/coworker or your friend's place, you can be envious, so their spending was worth it.

Same with all those car and watch ads in magazines. It's not like regular people are constantly looking to buy a new car. But the brand must be etched into brains. Your neighbor must be reasonably convinced that people around him are on the same page regarding the prestige of a certain brand, else it's not worth spending on. So even if you can't afford whatever car model, the fact that you're aware that it's prestigious is already worth it.

This is somewhat weaker in personalized online ads because your neighbor can't know what ads you saw. Billboards and super bowl ads a much better for establishing common knowledge, but perhaps that's why influencer-based marketing is gaining ground. All followers know that all followers saw the embedded ad. Maybe they should introduce ads where it says "Your friend Joe Schmo watched the following ad:"

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8. RiverCrochet ◴[] No.44505072[source]
This might hold water in 1980 when neighbors talked to each other and coworkers often worked in the same building and didn't wear Bluetooth earbuds, but I don't know so much about now.
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9. bonoboTP ◴[] No.44506704{3}[source]
Many people still interact and do things together in friend or acquaintance groups, even if not literal neighbors or coworkers.