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More legal trouble for Facebook. Last year, five Facebook users filed a lawsuit against the social networking site over the company’s “Sponsored Stories”. “Sponsored Stories” are ads that appear in newsfeeds and can include the names, photos and likes of your friends without consent. The verdict became public last week and the users were victorious. Users will now be able to opt out of Sponsored Stories and Facebook has promised to communicate better about what’s being used in the ads. It’s a victory for privacy advocates who have been making a huge push for users to have more power over their personal information. The settlement is not permanent though; under the agreement the changes only have to be followed for two years and Facebook will likely do whatever it can to get back to the old system. According to one estimate, Facebook could lose over 103 million dollars in revenue because of the ruling. That may not sound like much, but a few million here and a few million there can start to add up to real money!
About Shelly Palmer
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with AI strategy, implementation and governance, as well as technology, media and marketing. Named one of LinkedIn’s Top Voices in Technology, he is a bestselling author, covers tech and business for Fox 5’s Good Day New York, is a regular commentator on CNN, and writes the popular daily business blog Think About This. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.