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Spotify Is Now Selling Your Information To Advertisers (engadget.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the digital-age dept.

An anonymous reader writes from a report via Engadget: Spotify is now opening its data to targeted advertising. "Everything from your age and gender, to the music genres you like to listen to will be available to various third-party companies," reports Engadget. "Spotify is calling it programmatic ad buying (Warning: source may be paywalled) and has already enabled it." The nearly 70 million people that currently use Spotify's free, ad-supported streaming service across 59 countries will be affected. The ads will be audio-based and stretch between 15-30 seconds in length. The advertisers who buy ad spots will be able to look for specific users by viewing their song picks to find the best matches for the products they're selling. Two weeks ago, China has released its first ever set of digital ad regulations that seems to all but ban ad blocking.

107 comments

  1. Always been doing it by pete6677 · · Score: 4, Informative

    I figured they were doing this all along, and just now got around to announcing it. Telemetry is how all modern web businesses make money. How else would all of these services be "free"?

    1. Re:Always been doing it by vux984 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      How else would all of these services be "free"?

      Well, one model would be to give people a sample limited service to hopefully upsell them into a paid spotify premium; that would be the classic 'how else'.

      Note that spotify says this only applies to its non-paying customers.

      But yeah, if you aren't paying for the service, this is pretty much what you should expect.

    2. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you give Spotify any (real) information about yourself, you get what you deserve.

    3. Re:Always been doing it by saloomy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Really? So since you are hearing ads (and I'm assuming you a relatively young anonymous coward) you would rather hear irrelevant ads shilling restless leg syndrome aids VS cheap flights to cancun?

      Selling ad data to anyone is a morally bankrupt way of doing business IMHO, but you agree to all of this in the privacy policy and terms and conditions of using said service, why make the experience worse for both you and Spotify? Don't you like that free service you are using?

    4. Re: Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Different AC here.
      uBlock in Chromium blocks Spotify ads, so they can sell that fake info all they like.... as long as it keeps the service free.

    5. Re:Always been doing it by Mr.+Slippery · · Score: 5, Interesting

      So since you are hearing ads (and I'm assuming you a relatively young anonymous coward) you would rather hear irrelevant ads shilling restless leg syndrome aids VS cheap flights to cancun?

      Can't speak for the AC, but if I can't avoid corporate mind control (a.k.a. advertising) entirely I'd like it to be as mistargeted as possible. Facebook sometimes seems to think I'm in Sri Lanka or Laos and sends me ads I can't read, that's perfect.

      --
      Tom Swiss | the infamous tms | my blog
      You cannot wash away blood with blood
    6. Re:Always been doing it by SirSlud · · Score: 1

      You sell advertising. It's not always by using non-personally identifying information. That's the difference in this instance. *shrug*

      I don't know why people think companies are always making shit up. Why would they "get around to it?" If they were doing it before without telling users, they'd still be doing it without telling users.

      --
      "Old man yells at systemd"
    7. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Advertising is psychological warfare and a direct attack on your pocketbook. Ad "targetting" is simply a euphemism for making this attack more effective.

      I'd much rather get the RLS ads, because that means I'm much less likely to be persuaded into spending money I otherwise wouldn't have.

    8. Re:Always been doing it by serviscope_minor · · Score: 1

      Can't speak for the AC, but if I can't avoid corporate mind control (a.k.a. advertising) entirely I'd like it to be as mistargeted as possible.

      Ostensibly yes, but it kind of depends on the advertising. The station I listen to most mostly runs local ads exhorting me to come to Chavez Tires on Alameda, or telling me about the burrito special at Trujillo's.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    9. Re:Always been doing it by evilviper · · Score: 1

      you would rather hear irrelevant ads shilling restless leg syndrome aids VS cheap flights to cancun?

      Yes. There's nothing more annoying than hearing the same few ads OVER and OVER. I'd like the pool of ads to be as large as possible.

      It's even worse when (like most ads today) it's on a subject I at least care about, but the ad is information-free branding and puffery. When's the last time you saw a car ad that was all about lifetime costs, instead of a 30 second block of "Zoom, zoom"?

      And you know something... I might just be able to pass along info about {insert old-man syndrome} to my old-man.

      --
      Slashdot gets worse every day... Pipedot: News for nerds, without the corporate slant
    10. Re:Always been doing it by thegarbz · · Score: 2

      Tell me about it. I used to get ads for sexy singles, now I just get adds for penis enlargement pills and porn sites. Why can't we go back to the old way!

    11. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > you would rather hear irrelevant ads shilling restless leg syndrome aids VS cheap flights to cancun?

      Maybe this example works for you, but in my case they are both equally irrelevant. In fact, regardless of all the talk of targeting and pin-pointing, I've hardly ever seen a relevant ad. I won't claim I am unaffected, because at the rate we are bombarded, some are bound to stick. It should be noted that I run an ad-blocker, but before this (or on other devices) it is just noise to me.

    12. Re:Always been doing it by MitchDev · · Score: 1

      My iPod doesn't play ads, only the music, audiobooks, podcasts, etc that I put on it, it's great...

    13. Re:Always been doing it by serviscope_minor · · Score: 4, Insightful

      My iPod doesn't play ads, only the music, audiobooks, podcasts, etc that I put on it, it's great...

      But that requires you to put the stuff on it, which in turn requires you to know what stuff to put on it. Listening to the radio station gives me a nice selection but doesn't require either knowledge or effort on my part to hear things which are new to me.

      I mean it's not like I don't already have a bunch of mp3s, but I sometimes listen to the radio instead because it's not the same.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    14. Re:Always been doing it by MitchDev · · Score: 1

      At 100+ GBs, there's not a lot of "same"

    15. Re:Always been doing it by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Note that spotify says this only applies to its non-paying customers.

      I'm certain I don't believe that. Paying customers would be a much better information extraction source with higher likelyhood of buying stuff.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    16. Re:Always been doing it by smallfries · · Score: 1

      Paying customer don't get ads on the service. Perfectly targeted ads that are not heard would be somewhat useless...

      --
      Slashdot: where don knuth is an idiot because he cant grasp the awesome power of php
    17. Re:Always been doing it by smallfries · · Score: 1

      YMMV. I had about 250GB of mp3 when I got bored maintaining / organising the collection, and for me there was a lot of "same". It would depend largely on your memory / perception of music. Since I switched over to Spotify Premium I don't hit the same problems. There are are other problems: mainly licensing issues that make things disappear or albums that have tracks missing...

      --
      Slashdot: where don knuth is an idiot because he cant grasp the awesome power of php
    18. Re: Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But Spotify isn't free, you either pay a monthly subscription or listen free with advertising. You are just stealing their service without "paying" by watching their ads.

    19. Re:Always been doing it by serviscope_minor · · Score: 1

      At 100+ GBs, there's not a lot of "same"

      Same as what? I said listening to the radio is not the same as having one's own curated collection.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    20. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >...would you rather hear irrelevant ads...
      Yes, absolutely! They're easier to tune out.

      Look Saloomy, advertising does one thing very well: Brand Recognition, especially over time. It does another thing poorly: compelling people to actually buy something they were not considering, (unless you're really gullible). With the advent of internet search, ecommerce, customer reviews, etc. we don't need advertising- they need us. If we want something we shop for it. If we don't want something, we don't shop for it- and advertising's push for our attention when we're not in a shopping mood is frankly, rude.

      So yes: the less targeted, the less interesting the ad the better. I am MORE LIKELY to continue using a music service that interrupts me with white noise than something that is attractive, (because that pulls me AWAY from enjoying myself).

    21. Re:Always been doing it by MitchDev · · Score: 1

      No control over your own library. Not acceptable.

    22. Re:Always been doing it by MitchDev · · Score: 1

      The "same" refers to the same music over and over. the same flavor (pop, rock, metal, country, etc etc etc

    23. Re:Always been doing it by Maritz · · Score: 2

      I'm certain I don't believe that. Paying customers would be a much better information extraction source with higher likelyhood of buying stuff.

      When you pay you don't get ads. Maybe they sell the info anyway. That'd usually be illegal in Europe (dodgy EULA nonwithstanding), but dandy-as-fuck over the states.

      --
      I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
    24. Re: Always been doing it by Maritz · · Score: 1

      You are just stealing their service without "paying" by watching their ads.

      Wow, what a badass.

      --
      I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
    25. Re:Always been doing it by Shadow+IT+Ninja · · Score: 1

      Actually, I really prefer things the way they are with the political ads I'm getting being in Spanish. I'm into salsa dancing but I don't actually speak Spanish... well, I know enough to recognize what "los politicos" means but not much more than that.

    26. Re:Always been doing it by Shadow+IT+Ninja · · Score: 1

      I think that, to some extent, this telemetry and ad targeting is a sort of arms race. People only have so much money you can influence them to spend one way or another. Unless we set some limits, it's a race to the bottom to see who is best at invading people's privacy. From the point of view of the marketers, it's not really that they need the absolute best information on the potential customer. They just need better information then competing marketing firms have. Of course, it's important to point out that the sale of information can be for purposes other than targeting ads. I'm sure they will sell to anyone who will pay. This could be someone doing research, state and local law enforcement, foreign intelligence agencies, etc.

    27. Re: Always been doing it by thundercattt · · Score: 1

      My Android is like that too. Once I installed bigtincans adfree. I don't get Spotify ads. It simply skips a song.

    28. Re:Always been doing it by mschwanke97402 · · Score: 1

      YMMV. I had about 250GB of mp3 when I got bored maintaining / organising the collection, and for me there was a lot of "same". It would depend largely on your memory / perception of music. Since I switched over to Spotify Premium I don't hit the same problems. There are are other problems: mainly licensing issues that make things disappear or albums that have tracks missing...

      And there we have him folks. The ideal media consumer. Too lazy to acquire and organize his own music collection. He would much rather rent the music by the month (or let us sell his data and advertise him to death).

      How much longer before we rent our computer software by the month, oh right, its already happening. Our TV, check. Computer games, in the works...

    29. Re:Always been doing it by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Paying customer don't get ads on the service. Perfectly targeted ads that are not heard would be somewhat useless...

      So paying customers do not give Spotify any personal information? I don't particularly care, but if you give any commercial outfit doing business on the internet any personal information, they are monetizing your info in some way.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    30. Re:Always been doing it by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      I'm certain I don't believe that. Paying customers would be a much better information extraction source with higher likelyhood of buying stuff.

      When you pay you don't get ads. Maybe they sell the info anyway.

      Much info to be sold, even if you aren't getting ads.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    31. Re:Always been doing it by serviscope_minor · · Score: 1

      The "same" refers to the same music over and over. the same flavor (pop, rock, metal, country, etc etc etc

      On no, the station I listen to has both kinds of music.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    32. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope this means that ads will be more in line with the music I'm listening to. It's a bit jarring when you're listening to ambient music and an ad for Spotify's Top Club BOOM BOOM Hts comes on. But if it was an ad for say, a new Boards of Canada album or something, then at least it won't be as bad.

    33. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Facebook sometimes seems to think I'm in Sri Lanka or Laos and sends me ads I can't read, that's perfect.

      I guess you could say that their ad targeting was...

      (puts on sunglasses)
       
      ...Laos-y.

      YEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

    34. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      On no, the station I listen to has both kinds of music.

      They got drum and bass?

    35. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      lol, you have no idea. I have here a whole trade magazine devoted to siphoning up your info....for the healthcare field! It's scary, I can't even imagine other fields where this isn't actively discouraged :O

      looks for AC button for an AC

    36. Re:Always been doing it by serviscope_minor · · Score: 1

      No, country AND western.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    37. Re:Always been doing it by smallfries · · Score: 1

      Lazy?

      I take it that your time is not worth very much money. Penny-wise and pound foolish, eh?

      --
      Slashdot: where don knuth is an idiot because he cant grasp the awesome power of php
    38. Re:Always been doing it by smallfries · · Score: 1

      I doubt it. The name and address are in a public registry where I live and I doubt they are sharing the credit card number.

      --
      Slashdot: where don knuth is an idiot because he cant grasp the awesome power of php
    39. Re:Always been doing it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, I know- that's the original reference I was attempting to riff on. :-/

    40. Re:Always been doing it by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      I doubt it. The name and address are in a public registry where I live and I doubt they are sharing the credit card number.

      Well then, I'm 100 percent certain that you are correct. Thanks for the clarification.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  2. Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Fly+Swatter · · Score: 3, Informative

    These headlines are so assuming. Your this. Your that. I am not a customer of Spotify, so they are not. I hope.

    1. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Eh. You never know.

    2. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You are so assuming. Customer this. Customer that. I am a paid customer of Spotify, free users are not. Only their information is being sold.

    3. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by sconeu · · Score: 0

      If you used Spotify, you were NEVER a customer of theirs, you were their PRODUCT.

      --
      General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
    4. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by byornski · · Score: 1

      And that the actual paying customers of spotify are not being affected. This sounds like FUD. Perhaps we should all use itunes now?

    5. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Your this. Your that...

      Your what?

    6. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      These headlines are so assuming. Your this. Your that. I am not a customer of Spotify, so they are not. I hope.

      Damn straight. If you use their service, you're the product.

    7. Re: Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      Can we just start shooting people who trot out this tired old cliche every five minutes?

    8. Re: Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You most certainly can if you live in the USA: you can buy a gun at the kids' lemonade stand, or borrow one from the nun next door.

      Elsewhere in the world though, you'll just have to glare at the offender, and perhaps go, "tsk, tsk."

    9. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Actually as a paying member of Spotify, I am a customer of theirs and they provide a good service.

      Shockingly when I used their free service, I paid by listening to their adverts. Is it so terrible if those adverts are targeted to things I'm more likely to be interested in.

    10. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by thegarbz · · Score: 2

      If you ever use that quote you failed business school and probably think the entire world is black and white too.

      Grow up.

    11. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by MitchDev · · Score: 2

      Screw streaming, just get a portable player and put you files on it, no ads

    12. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 1

      It sounds like FUD because the article describes Spotify selling targeted ad spots, but there's not much value in just dumping the user's data to every customer buying ads. They'd need an expensive data engineer to come up with all kinds of statistical analysis methods to categorize and analyze that data, and then decide what to do.

      It seems more likely Spotify is selling ads based on aggregate statistics. "We have 46 million teenage-college students listening to Bieberpop, and 2 hundred listening to Nickelback; it's $150,000 for a Bieberpop spot."

      --
      Support my political activism on Patreon.
    13. Re: Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      We could if people stopped incorrectly calling themselves customers when they are products.

      Or more aptly put; can we just start shooting people who gleefully display their smug arrogance and try to hold the rest of us back?

    14. Re:Spotify Is Now Selling _Customer_ Information by Shadow+IT+Ninja · · Score: 1

      I don't know about Spotify, but Facebook is violating the privacy of people who are not their customers. They build facial recognition profiles of everyone in photos uploaded to Facebook, just in case the non-members might join some day. Their facial recognition database is, of course, far too valuable to just use in-house. I'm sure they plan to sell access to federal, state and local law enforcement as well as foreign agencies and companies.

  3. The almighty GOOG does it too. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It must be fine.

    1. Re:The almighty GOOG does it too. by Aighearach · · Score: 2

      Nope. Google actually is the ad company, so instead of selling information to an ad company, they just keep it, and sell ads.

    2. Re: The almighty GOOG does it too. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ApL does it better and right by selling ads too!

      You're both the buyer and the product! Now that's multitasking!

  4. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  5. Nothing is free by grumpy-cowboy · · Score: 1

    Period.

    --
    Will $CURRENT_YEAR be the year of the Linux Desktop?
    1. Re:Nothing is free by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      You know that Spotify offers paid services, don't you? Yes, even paying customers get to be picked apart under a microscope, profiled, and sold.

    2. Re:Nothing is free by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 1

      Nothing is free, Period.

      How much do you pay for your daily sunlight, air and gravity?

      --
      Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
    3. Re:Nothing is free by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 4, Funny

      How much do you pay for your daily sunlight, air and gravity?

      I'm somewhat large, and so I actually get a rebate from my gravity bill.

      --

      --
      "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
    4. Re:Nothing is free by codeButcher · · Score: 1

      How much do you pay for your daily sunlight, air and gravity?

      I'm somewhat large, and so I actually get a rebate from my gravity bill.

      No, dear fellow mom's basement dweller. All those sunlight units you never use, as well as the portion of air credits unused due to the stuffy atmosphere down there, are actually carried over to your gravity balance (after "administrative" debits, of course).

      --
      Free, as in your money being freed from the confines of your account.
    5. Re:Nothing is free by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They will fix that soon enough when you are all living in Domes because the Air is unbreathable. The poisoning of the Air and Water, you didn't think was an accident did you? =p

    6. Re:Nothing is free by serviscope_minor · · Score: 1

      Yes things are free.

      There's this peculiar definition of "free" which has been cropping up here a lot recently which is entirely at odds with how just about everyone else uses the words. Under the definition, a tenner on the floor is not free money because you had to take time to pick it up and so there's some opportunity cost associated.

      The (streaming) radio station I like listening to is entirely free, in that I don't have to pay anything to listen to it, just like I could bick it up for free on any FM receiver when I was in range of the broadcasting tower.

      It's free as in I don't pay anything for it.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    7. Re:Nothing is free by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Linux is free. Almost everyhing is free provided that you have the Internet.

    8. Re:Nothing is free by mjwx · · Score: 1

      How much do you pay for your daily sunlight, air and gravity?

      I'm somewhat large, and so I actually get a rebate from my gravity bill.

      Yes, but the GP's mass is so great, he generates his own gravity.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    9. Re:Nothing is free by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      90's internet guy: OH SHIT YOU FOUND MY THING? UP HIGH, YEAH, AWESOME.
      00's internet guy: I made a thing, and it's helped like 5000 people! Topped the download charts for a week!
      Friend of 10's internet guy: Are you seriously allOWING people to use your thing for free? Oh my gawd.

      It's weird that frantic, shoehorned monetization is becoming more routine as society (supposedly) needs it less.

  6. Well bless their heart. by davmoo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You mean there are actually people who think Spotify gives away free music out of the goodness of their heart and a desire to make the world a better place, expecting nothing in return? How cute!

    --
    I want a new quote. One that won't spill. One that don't cost too much. Or come in a pill.
    1. Re:Well bless their heart. by saloomy · · Score: 1

      Even if they did, the RIAA .... nuff said.

    2. Re:Well bless their heart. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The web used to do that shit all the time. I mean, humans came up with shit all the time too, but the web catalyzed it with small-world effect.

      I say "used to" but it still does - you just can't hear it over the noise of frenzied cash grabs.

      If you're unashamed of your avarice, there's no need to dress it in "I HAVE to" rationalizations.

  7. Usernames too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    They also sell your username if someone higher on the social ladder wants the one you're using.

    Hey, maybe that's how they can finally monetize Slashdot. I'll put up $5 for "CmdrTaco"

    1. Re:Usernames too by rizole · · Score: 1

      Give me $5 and I'll take "CoyboyNeal"

  8. I blocked the ads with privoxy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    It works system wide.

    1. Re:I blocked the ads with privoxy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Privoxy is indeed badass and under-publicized. Unfortunately, learning curve is too steep for average joes.

  9. Well... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They're not selling *MY* information....

  10. Unsurprising by Flownez · · Score: 1

    This seems to be almost a Darwinian step in evolution for online data/service providers. I'm sure Spotify is only doing this to survive in the perilous digital wild.

  11. Good luck with the gender thing. by tlambert · · Score: 2

    Good luck with the gender thing.

    Most 56 year old FBI agents show up as 12 year old girls.

  12. Microsoft could. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They have more info on you and share it with the US Government freely.

  13. Investors Ask Themselves by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why they weren't doing this from day one?

  14. Which may be good by guillemsola · · Score: 0

    I'm now on premium but when I was on free I was always wondering why many time the ads where so disconnected with my interests. Luckily now you will not get a reageton song while listening soft music XD

  15. So, just like the rest by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    and every other website out there for the last 10 years, but still nowhere near as bad as their American counterparts, and Google, Microsoft, Facebook, etc? Yeah let's grasp for straws to make Spotify sound like the devil.

  16. Bully for them by codeButcher · · Score: 1

    Too bad (harhar) the "service" isn't available in my locale.

    --
    Free, as in your money being freed from the confines of your account.
  17. Interesting title choice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There is a big difference between offering ad space with targetization and 'selling your information to advertisers'.

    Spotify knows which music you do like because you use Spotify to play that music. Duh! Your friendly local store knows your purchasing habits and the friendly owner is happy to use that knowledge to send offers and information your way. See the similarities?

    There is NOTHING wrong with targetized ads. They are about using the information the company already has about you in order to offer you ads you may actually be interested in, instead of junk you ignore. The Internet would be a much better place if banners where actually useful, but unfortunately the concept is too complex to your average free software mouth-breather who is too busy trying to scream 'but it is muh data! muh data!' without choking himself.

    1. Re:Interesting title choice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As someone who builds servers for targeted advertising: okay yeah, we might be evil, but targeted ads pay like 20x what untargeted ones do. When I see a site staffed by paid content creators that only has one or two ads on a page, instead of gigantic popups+autoplaying video+PUNCH THE MONKEY, I know I'm doing God's work.

  18. New technology by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There's this new technology called MP3 files. You can save music as digital files on your hard drive and listen to them without streaming! It's cool. You must be a hair above retarded to do it, so limitations may apply.

  19. But is a free service! There's an app! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Millions of Millenials and Boomers yawn, half of GenX already beaten down too much to care, and the other half never used the app.

  20. I just staretd a family subscription by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    First ad I hear I am cancelling. I'm not paying 15$ a month to hear a fucking ad.

  21. Cough up some $$$ or deal with it. by moeinvt · · Score: 2

    Remember, when you're using a "free" service, you're the product, not the customer, so don't complain when the company sells its product(users, or at least their eyes and ears) to its customers.
    It's not exactly hard to find deals and discounts for Spotify Premium either. Six months free, $99 for the first year, etc. I think they also offer a student rate of $4.99 per month or something.
    I love Spotify. Even the full $10 per month is worth it to get the full spectrum of music and avoid any annoying ads.

  22. Not selling data by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    FTFA:

    "Update: A previous version of this story asserted user data was being sold, this is not the case."

  23. How difficult is it to block ads? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's not. uBlock Origin is the current best method to rid yourself of the ads. Ads are now the largest vector for malware. While I do run BSD as my OS, I still don't want to see ads. They are invasive, take away valuable screen real estate, and I have NEVER bought something because of an ad--so the advertisers parasites efforts are useless anyway. Moreover, I don't want to be tracked, my info sold. This is the reason I have no Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. For me, these services serve as a way for someone else to make money from me. None of these services are "free". You are paying for them.

    I have friends who post photos of themselves with guns at the range. Now the world knows you're a gun owner. Ditto some posting pics of their cars with license plates in full view. It's one thing to ride down the road, but it's another to give your name, address, and license plate away when at the same time posting quasi-inflammatory political rhetoric online. Be the grey man... Move through the Internet like a fish through water.

  24. Why post paywall links? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yes, it's paywalled, so why use that link? Do you really think I'm going to subscribe to the WSJ just to see an article? There are plenty of other sources:

    http://www.businessinsider.com...

    http://adage.com/article/agenc...

    I thought the idea of audio ads was interesting. I haven't had speakers turned on for years, except when I do something like running a youtube video. I don't like being surprised by irrelevant sounds when I'm trying to concentrate. So if someone out there is yelling at me right now about the best laundry soap then I'm unaware of it.

  25. not mine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    since i download music like ive alwaysdone, pirated album in a beautiful rar file, nothing beats that

  26. Not selling by Isao · · Score: 1

    AND... an update to the Engadget story says they're not selling it. Presumably it's being used in their in-house ad system. All better now?

  27. The article is completely misleading by ayhanap · · Score: 1

    Letting ad givers to target potential audience using some of the customer information like age, gender etc. does not mean selling data or compromising personal data. As what I get from the post, ad givers will not get specific user information they just inform spotify that I want my ads to be heared by only females, because I my product has no use among men.

  28. A New Twist by mschwanke97402 · · Score: 1

    You get what you pay for

    Has become:

    If you didn't pay for it they get you!

  29. Nope not my info by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Amazon might be able to sell mine, as I buy my MP3s from them. But they can't sell my listening habits, as I refuse to use their player.

  30. Wrong: Not mine - how/why? Oh, you know by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    APK Hosts File Engine 9.0++ SR-4 32/64-bit https://www.google.com/search?...

    Less power/cpu/ram + IO use vs. DNS/routers/addons/antivirus (slows you) + less security issues/complexity.

    Compliments firewalls (blocking less used IP addys vs. hosts blocking more used domains) & DNS (lightens dns load).

    Gets data via 10 security sites.

    Ads rob speed, security (malvertising), privacy (tracking).

    Hosts add speed (hardcodes/adblocks), security (bad sites/poisoned dns), reliability (dns down), & anonymity (dns requestlogs/trackers) natively.

    Hosts != ClarityRay blockable (vs. souled-out to admen inferior wasteful redundant slow usermode addons)

    Works vs. caps & PUSH ads.

    Avg. page = big as Doom http://www.theregister.co.uk/2... & ads = 40% of it.

    APK

    P.S. - Safe https://www.virustotal.com/en/... (Verified by Malwarebytes' S. Burn "seen the code & it's safe" http://forum.hosts-file.net/vi... )

  31. UBlock = inferior + inefficient vs. hosts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    UBlock can't do these as well as (or @ all) hosts do 4 speed, security, & reliability:

    1.) Protect vs. bad sites (past ads)
    2.) Protect vs. fastflux botnet C&C's
    3.) Protect vs. dyndns botnet C&C's
    4.) Protect vs. DGA botnet C&C's
    5.) Protect vs. downed DNS (reliability)
    6.) Protect vs. DNS poisoned dns
    7.) Protect vs. trackers
    8.) Protect vs. spam payloads
    9.) Protect vs. phish payloads
    10.) Protect vs. caps
    11.) Get past dns blocks
    12.) Keep off dns request logs
    13.) Speed up 2 ways (adblocks/hardcodes)
    14.) Work on anything webbound multiplatform.
    15.) Ez data edit
    16.) Block ads more efficiently in cpu/ram/I-O use
    17.) UBlock now uses hosts (no DNS benefits vs. dns issues) - poor imitation = "sincerest form of flattery"

    Hosts = native vs. illogically "Bolting on 'MoAr'" & not ClarityRay blockable like addons.

    APK

    P.S.=> Hosts (1st resolver) do MORE w/ less in fast kernelmode & before slow usermode addons

    Hosts ~3mb vs. UBlock = 64MB -> http://cdn.ghacks.net/wp-conte...

  32. Spotify cunts can by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    suck my balls.

  33. review by CarmellaVict · · Score: 1

    Forward Head Posture Fix Review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?... Are you looking for an overview of Mike Westerdal and Rick Kasel Forward Head Posture Fix ? You are in the right place! Do you know, low energy, shortness of breath, inebriation, and neck and back pain are just some of the problems you may suffer from? But why? How a perfectly healthy, athletic person who eating well and trains still suffer? Allow me to explain Over 90% of US population has been suffering from forward head posture or texting neck. This is a problem that no one is tackling, that doctors are not able to diagnose and that creates just as many health risks as obesity and you’re likely to suffer from it, too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?... It affects almost everyone, regardless of your age and fitness level. This is a problem that originates in only one area of your body but affects the overall health, including your mental and your physical condition. Forward head posture fixes it the simplest program you can use to immediately improve your position for greater strength, better health and energy in less than 15 minutes a day. If you want to stand up, look slimmer, improve your breathing and sleep while to get rid of text messages the neck, you must apply for this Forward Head Posture Fix program. https://www.youtube.com/watch?... Few Info About Forward Head Posture: https://www.youtube.com/watch?... Your neck is designed to remain upright, keeping your weight in the skull ideal line from the top of head right down through your body to your feet. As you look at yourself in the mirror from the side, your ear, shoulder and your hips should be all in a straight line down to the floor. If it is unaligned and your ear t is in front of your shoulders it’s a sure sign of the position of the head forward. You see, the average head weighs 10-12 pounds. When your head fits perfectly on your neck and shoulders, the body naturally adjusts to hold this weight. But if your head is constantly pulling forward, pulling the weight of your head on the neck and puts pressure on the spine. When your head is pulled forward the additional pressure on the neck, shoulders and back rises sharply causing serious tissue damage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?... In fact, every inch of your head is pushed forward from its natural position adds an additional 10 pounds of stress on the neck, shoulders, back and spine. That’s why you may have developed that ugly hump below the neck; to combat stress keeping your head up, the body’s reaction has been to increase bone mass and adipose tissue in order to compensate and protect the spine from the C7 vertebrae. Forward head postures not just leave you looking uncomfortable No matter how hard you train or how well you eat, if you do not start fixing your head posture right now, it might not be possible to reverse the damage has already been done https://www.youtube.com/watch?... My Recommendation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?... I am sure you will see results within a few days, I am happy to make this daring promise that if you are not satisfied for any reason, he insist on giving you a full, hassle-free, no-questions-asked refund -asked refund. Instead, from the first time you watch a video walkthrough with Rick, you know exactly why this program has been so popular, you will be almost immediate use. In just 15 minutes a day, you will find the program very easy to incorporate into your daily routine and within a week you will notice the little aches and pains in your shoulders, back and neck disappeared. https://www.youtube.com/watch?... You f