Think I'll stick with bricks and mortar

I am a cynic by nature. I know this, and whenever I catch my self tutting or rolling my eyes, I do honestly try to stop and give the benefit of the doubt. And then I read that the reason Facebook decided to broadcast it’s users shopping habits to the whole community was “to provide you with new meaningful ways, like Beacon, to help you connect and share information with your friends”.

I nearly tutted and rolled my eyeballs off my chair, let me tell you. There is already too much advertising on Facebook for my liking, but hey, I’ve become addicted to the completely pointless activity of virtually poking my friends, so I’ll leave my profile up a little longer. However, I’m fairly certain my friends don’t give a stuff what I’ve been buying online. Call me a cynic though, but I’m willing to bet that the e-tailers are pretty interested in the shopping habits of the 55 million people who use the site…..

Thanks for thinking of us though, Facebook.

Rock on

Does anyone else think Northern Rock and Alistair Darling have missed a trick? Surely Northern Rock should be contacting each of the 25 million people that had their details posted into the wide blue yonder by the home office. By offering a small incentive, Northern Rock might just persuade those effected that their money is safer in the hands of the Rock than in existing accounts that are now a potential fraud target.

Two birds with one rock, as it were?