Thursday, March 13, 2014

Amazon and big data predictions


Last week, we spoke about the process of companies such as Netflix collecting consumer data and then evolving to serve consumers with products exactly tailored to their interests. This issue was also discussed in the Big Data Ethics article. The authors were concerned that big data predictions could categorize consumers with its algorithms, serve us the things that we supposedly like in a way that ultimately limits our choices and the growth of our personal identities. In this article, it seems that Amazon was doing this kind of data collection before Google and Facebook. The company has morphed into a provider of all kinds of services from bookseller, to publisher, to seller of household appliances, delivery service to TV show creator. This article is a great read. It shows a company that has really mastered the big data collection process and questions whether Amazon’s monopoly could give Amazon too much control over the exchange of ideas in US society.

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