A tweet on BlueSky raised the issue of tracking in advertising being a driver for breaching privacy.

I think the problem is broader. The Internet has never devised a solution for capturing small payments for the privilege of visiting sites in place of advertising revenue. Most ad-walled sites (those sites that refuse entry to ad-blocked browsers) will demand you view adverts (sorry, unacceptable if I’ve chosen to block them as a matter of principle) or subscriptions, often for a month or a year, when there could be one solitary thing of interest.

That raises another pet hate – the Tweeter who says “Read my interesting article.” so I have had my interest piqued, I click the link, only to be assailed by a block or a demand for payment. Sorry, that’s become advertising a product, not an exchange of information through social media.

I don’t mind people earning their reputation by posting Interesting Things on social media with the intent of encouraging me to consider their wares, but the social contract I expect to make is that you need to earn my click through by entertaining me first, or by providing me (free) entertainment by clicking through, then earning my interest. The seller doesn’t get to dictate how I expect to interact, it’s a bargaining process.