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When Profiling Goes Wrong

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the now-thats-funny-shit dept.

huskymo writes "This morning's Wall Street Journal is carrying a funny story on TiVo and Amazon's automatic customer profiling. As most Slashdot readers probably know, TiVo keeps track of which programs you record and--if you haven't told it not to--records other programs it thinks you'd like. The article describes users that TiVo's mistaken for Korean, for gay, even for "a pregnant gay man."" Funny as hell.

9 of 615 comments (clear)

  1. Re:grr by GeckoX · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    No shit, it's not even a free reg, which is bad enough.

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  2. Re:grr by AgTiger · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    Maybe this is another form of Slashdot advertising? I wonder if the WSJ pays them to link to the occasional story. ;-)

  3. I'm Amazed by OS24Ever · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    There aren't hundreds of posts bashing TiVo for profiling. Oh wait, that's because people can't even pretend to read the article because it requires a SUBSCRIPTION! heh.

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    As a rock-in-roll Physicist once said, No matter where you go, there you are.

  4. That sounds funny enough to fork over $79!!! by JohnDenver · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    ...or I can give them fake info for 2 free weeks...

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    "Communism is like having one [local] phone company " - Lenny Bruce
  5. is slashdot by CableModemSniper · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    getting kickbacks from the Wall Street Journal now? I can see the future now: "According to the Wall Street Journal (blah blah paid registration blah blah) the IT market..." *sigh*

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    Why not fork?
  6. Re:Correct article by LordKariya · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    It's in the middle, genius.

    will build up a profile of what you like and dislike. Then, if you want it to, it will spend its idle time (when it's not recording programmes you've specifically asked it

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  7. Rubbish by greygent · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    You need a fucking paid subscription to read this article. Why even bother submitting it to Slashdot, as most certainly a large majority of its readers don't have a paid subscription.

  8. Re:SPAM profiling is the worst! by desertfish · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    But is your penis wreathed in long, curly tendrils of luxurious hair the every other normal male's?

  9. What Are You Guys Talking About? by entrylevel · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    I know we aren't supposed to read the article, but I figured this would be funny, so I... clicked the link! Imagine my (lack of) surprise when the article was displayed on my screen! This is my work machine, I just wiped the cookies yesterday, and I do not subscribe to WSJ Online. The only cookie on it is my /. login. What gives? Was the link changed or you people can't even be bothered with an extra click?

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