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Google Seeking "FriendRank" Patent

Posted by kdawson on from the at-least-it's-not-pigeons dept.

theodp writes "In its just-published patent application for Network Node Ad Targeting, Google hatches plans for identifying the most influential of a circle of friends and providing this 'influencer' with 'financial incentives from advertisers in exchange for permission to display advertisements on the member's [social network] profile' (sound familiar, Jeremy?). Doing so will 'provide advertisers with the option of targeting either all members in the community or advertising only on the profile of the influencer, thereby targeting the entire community,' explains Google. Who says you can't buy friendship!"

2 of 80 comments (clear)

  1. Re:And your best friend will go with this? by tehcyder · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Is being paid to advertise a product completely immoral on Slashdot now ?

    Friendship isn't supposed to be a commercial transaction.

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    To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  2. The Tipping Point, Anyone? by apok04 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Malcolm Gladwell talks about this concept in his book The Tipping Point. Specifically, Google is looking for Mavens, the people that you go to for information. Mavens are the early adopters, and a circle of friends often relies on their opinions to determine whether or not to purchase a product. Marketers have been trying to find a way to specifically target Mavens for decades. I don't think that what Google is doing is very manipulative (since they are asking the Maven in the first place). I would assume that a Maven by nature would reject advertisements that he/she didn't agree with, or make comments about the ones he/she likes or doesn't like on their personal page anyways.

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    It's not a bug, it's a feature