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Larry Page Issues Public Update On Google Changes

Posted by Unknown on from the trust-us-we're-not-evil dept.

itwbennett writes "Larry Page just wants to be loved. Well, he wants 'Google to be a company that is deserving of great love,' Page wrote in a public letter. But he also wants to offer the kind of personalized service that the requires trampling on your privacy. 'The recent changes we made to our privacy policies generated a lot of interest. But they will enable us to create a much better, more intuitive experience across Google — our key focus for the year,' Page wrote." From the letter: "Think about basic actions like sharing or recommendations. When you find a great article, you want to share that knowledge with people who will find it interesting, too. If you see a great movie, you want to recommend it to friends. Google+ makes sharing super easy by creating a social layer across all our products so users connect with the people who matter to them." With all the claims of altruistic intent in the open letter, one might wonder why Google has to push their own social network instead of working on open protocols for sharing.

4 of 159 comments (clear)

  1. More iffy Slashdot editorial by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm not really a Google fan. I deleted quite a lot of my information when they announced the privacy policy change. I don't use Google+.

    But, really, "why didn't Google work on Diaspora"? Give me a break.

    1. Re:More iffy Slashdot editorial by Dishevel · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The fact that Google made it exceedingly easy for you to delete the information it has on you did not make you a fan?
      And it was not an all or nothing thing either. I could choose what to delete and what to keep.

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
  2. Re:Simple... by nyctopterus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Actually, I think there would be for Google. I'd argue that they should be concentrating on keeping the web from being swallowed up by huge sites like Facebook, which will develop their own advertising and revenue streams. If they supported an open platform for social networking, it's more likely that the landscape would comprise a bunch of smaller players--who would get their revenue through Google ads.

    I think this is essentially their strategy with Android. It's a better strategy than going into direct competition with Facebook, which has got them--and will continue to get them--nowhere.

  3. Re:I stopped reading pretty quickly by Anne_Nonymous · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Don't Look Evil

    Eh, that's close enough.