Talk:Plaxo
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More info at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Spam_%28electronic%29#Plaxo.3F that could be worked in, but needs NPOV work.
Mentioning David Coursey in the criticism section isn't really worthy of the article. Coursey isn't even that relevant of a figure. If we want a better example, perhaps use Joel Spolsky.
I'm not quite understanding what Coursey's compaint was exactly, "Plaxo received criticism from technology journalist David Coursey, who was upset about receiving a number of requests from Plaxo users to update their contact information..." - He received requests from people wanting HIM to change THEIR information? That doesn't make much sense... Wegsjac 00:13, 7 November 2007 (UTC)
I agree with the comment above, especially that the nature of Coursey's complaint is unclear. However, my guess is that Coursey's complaint actually relates to an important and current controversy on unintended and unwanted sharing of personal information.
Let's call that topic "Privacy". The controversy is with Plaxo Pulse in which, at the time of writing, all new connections (people) that a person adds into Pulse are pushed out to all other connections. Users appear to have no control over who receives that information. In Plaxo's responses they assert that Pulse is a social network, and by definition (to them) this means information is open to all. Some users view this as a violation of Plaxo's own privacy policy. In my opinion the issue of privacy -- specifically the users' control of their privacy -- probably should to be addressed in all discussions of social networking platforms.
Related questions are: do users clearly understand who can see their information; is the policy transparent and easy to understand; is there a mechanism for the user to control their privacy; how granular are the control mechanisms (e.g. can a user block specific persons, or block specific pieces of information from being automatically distributed); what risks are users exposed to (e.g. phishing, stalking).
In essense, to what extent can users trust their online social network?
The Plaxo forum currently has at least one thread from concerned users on this topic at http://forum.plaxo.com/showthread.php?t=4357
- AdmiralSven (talk) 23:18, 12 January 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Critism section needs expansion
There's definitely more to the story about Plaxo criticism than one tech journalist. A lot of people thought of them as practically synonymous with spam, and still may. See "Spam, or Not?", "Now That Plaxo Spam Has Annoyed Enough People, It's Time To Fade It Out?", and "Plaxo: Now With Less Evil" for examples and potential sources. William Pietri (talk) 21:06, 14 February 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Dubious business practices
Plaxo is not a serious service. In my personal case they have ignored a termination of a free of charge trial service twice and charge my credit card. 81.210.176.112 (talk) 22:43, 4 May 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Comcast acquires Plaxo
someone else could probably modify this article better than i could...
May 14, 2008 Comcast is adding a social dimension to its services through the acquisition of Plaxo, a deal the two companies announced Wednesday afternoon. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the purchase price is thought to be in the $150 to $170 range. The acquisition is a big win for Plaxo, whose Pulse social network service, with 1.5 million active monthly users, has been overshadowed by the likes of Facebook and MySpace. It's a smart move by Comcast, which can enhance the user experience across its 14 million high-speed Internet subscribers, 3 million voice customers, and 24.2 million cable subscribers. The acquisition is built on a preexisting relationship. In May 2007, Comcast partnered with Plaxo to offer a networked address book to subscribers of its various services. Comcast is Plaxo's largest customer and partner, with Plaxo hosting all Comcast subscriber e-mail address book accounts. http://www.news.com/8301-13953_3-9944352-80.html —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sadchild (talk • contribs) 11:30, 15 May 2008 (UTC)
