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Colin Dunstan · 01-11-2006, 08:32 PM

I am not sure if this is indeed blown out of proportion. Fact is Apple is sending data of every song you click on to a 3rd party's server, and didn't explicitely mention it nor ask for your permission. Take Microsoft's Media Player, for instance. The following dates back to 2002:

The changes follow a recent FTC settlement, in which Microsoft agreed to 20 years of government oversight of consumer privacy policies and procedures. Last year, 14 consumer and privacy groups filed a complaint with the FTC, alleging that Microsoft's online Passport authentication system violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act... Windows Media Player 9 Series may be one of the first new Microsoft products so clearly putting privacy policies and controls in the hands of consumers. Unlike competing products or earlier versions of Microsoft's media player, the privacy policies and settings option is the first thing a consumers sees the first time the product is started... Privacy and media players are an increasingly hot item--and not just for U.S. regulators. The European Union, for example, is looking into regulating media players with respect to privacy. Microsoft's increased emphasis on privacy could help the company in Europe, particularly since the EU last year expanded an ongoing antitrust investigation to include media players."

It was a big deal to Microsoft, and it should be a big deal to Apple if they doesn't want to get into the same kind of trouble.

01-11-2006, 08:32 PM	#10
Colin Dunstan Is papyrophobic! Posts: 1,926 Karma: 1009999 Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: USA Device: Dell Axim	I am not sure if this is indeed blown out of proportion. Fact is Apple is sending data of every song you click on to a 3rd party's server, and didn't explicitely mention it nor ask for your permission. Take Microsoft's Media Player, for instance. The following dates back to 2002: The changes follow a recent FTC settlement, in which Microsoft agreed to 20 years of government oversight of consumer privacy policies and procedures. Last year, 14 consumer and privacy groups filed a complaint with the FTC, alleging that Microsoft's online Passport authentication system violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act... Windows Media Player 9 Series may be one of the first new Microsoft products so clearly putting privacy policies and controls in the hands of consumers. Unlike competing products or earlier versions of Microsoft's media player, the privacy policies and settings option is the first thing a consumers sees the first time the product is started... Privacy and media players are an increasingly hot item--and not just for U.S. regulators. The European Union, for example, is looking into regulating media players with respect to privacy. Microsoft's increased emphasis on privacy could help the company in Europe, particularly since the EU last year expanded an ongoing antitrust investigation to include media players." It was a big deal to Microsoft, and it should be a big deal to Apple if they doesn't want to get into the same kind of trouble.