FINAL UPDATE:  Facebook finally gets religion…(but it’s too easy to read between the lines…) 
UPDATE: It seems Facebook has changed the Opt-Out process to an Opt-In process. That’s a move in the right direction in response to users and feedback. Good on them. But, do we REALLY want Facebook knowing that much about us? I guess the number of users that stop using Facebook as a result will be the gauge. Let’s wait and see…

That’s the quote from today’s New York Times article on Facebook’s new ad service, “Beacon.” In short, for those not as completely engrossed in this ongoing debate as I am, Facebook is now tracking and broadcasting purchases you make on OTHER websites across your friend network. The goal here is to make money by selling ads next to those purchase notices.

Another one of my favorite quotes from the article:

“Whenever we innovate and create great new experiences and new features, if they are not well understood at the outset, one thing we need to do is give people an opportunity to interact with them,” said Chamath Palihapitiya, a vice president at Facebook. “After a while, they fall in love with them.”

Sounds a bit scary to me. Not so much that Facebook is doing it, but more so that they aren’t really giving users any real time control over when and how it happens. They claim it’s opt-in. But what does that mean? If it’s a small notice that’s hard to discern that pops up as you purchase something asking you to take some kind of action if you DON’T want that purchase shared, then that just doesn’t cut it for me.

The value of sharing activity across your social graph has already been proven, or accepted. But once that sharing starts to reach across social network borders, we need to rethink the control and visibility in the process. I know that my friends on Facebook know what I’m doing on Facebook and I act accordingly when I’m interacting with Facebook as a result? I know everyone that follows my Twitter Stream knows hat I’m doing and thinking, and again, act accordingly. Do I want my friends to know what I’m doing when I’m off of Facebook? Sure, sometimes. And, probably not at other times. It’s not the conept that’s flawed, it’s the execution.

If I have visible, real-time, non-intrusive control over where, when and with whom I share my activities, then I am free to leverage that sharing in a way that makes my experience online (and off) better. If I am visibly aware that another party is getting access to my activities and probably gaining monetarily by them, then again, I can act accordingly and make decisions based on the value that I’m getting in return.

That’s the driving philosophy behind Me.dium. We know we provide a service that requires trust on the part of our users and can only succeed if we provide the control and value that justifies that trust. Why do others believe they have the right to get away without providing that control, visibility and value just because they’re worth a bunch of money? Because users have always “accepted” it in the past? Why don’t large companies remember what mom constantly used to say, “always say please, thank you and treat others the way you’d want to be treated?”

Is that really so hard? Hmmmmmm…

UPDATE: Coke is already balking!

If you’re an OS widget user, you’re going to love this! Me.dium Neighborhood widgets are now available on the OSX Dashboard and in the Vista Sidebar.

You can now view the Me.dium relevant content and people in a particular Me.dium Neighborhood, right from your desktop.

To set this up…

1. Install Amnesty Widgets.
2. Run “Amnesty Generator.”
3. Select “Google Gadgets”
4. Copy/Paste code from one of the Available Neighborhoods below, into the generator.
5. Give your widget a name, use “1234″ as the Identifier, width is 200, height is 230.
6. Click “Generate” and enjoy the full glory of a Me.dium Neighborhood on your desktop.

Available Neighborhoods

• Sports

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3336"></script>

• The 10th View

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3339"></script>

• Music

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3333"></script>

• Technology

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3338"></script>

• Gaming

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3337"></script>

• Humor

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3334"></script>

• Pop Culture

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3335"></script>

• News

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://me.dium.com/mapwidget/3332"></script>

Another action packed day of events in Me.dium. Check out the lineup for Thursday’s events.

To join, click on the event title you want to join and look for the official ’shout out’ in the Me.dium sidebar at the appointed time.

See you there!

Me.dium Presents: Me.Fest

1 PM EST/ 10 AM PST

Gift hunting w/ Cool Hunting
We’re taking the hectic out of the Holidays. Skip the crowds to shop online with CoolHunting.com’s Ami Kealoha.

Thursday, Nov. 29th
2 PM EST/ 11 AM PST

Best of Vox
Krissy leads us on a tour of the hottest sites in the Vox-o-sphere.

Thursday, Nov. 29th
3 PM EST/ 12 PM PST

Mom’s Moment w/ Posh Mama
Discover why all the “haute mamas” hang out at PoshMama.com.

Thursday, Nov. 29th
4 PM EST/ 1 PM PST

RockMe. Presents: The Nice Boys
Power-pop rockers The Nice Boys will show us around their unique sound, and share some experiences from the road.

Thursday, Nov. 29th
5 PM EST/ 2 PM PST

Youth in Politics w/ Steve Fenberg
Steve Fenberg from New Era Colorado discusses the importance and power of organizing the youth vote as well as ways to have an impact on local issues.

Me.Fest continues with a day packed full of wholesome goodness and fruity drinks followed by an evening full of whack-a-doodles. Seriously, check out this line up:

Mom’s Minute - 1 PM EST/ 10 AM PST
Calling all Moms! We’re hosting our second Mom’s minute. Hop on in today and share some of your most outrageous parenting stories.

Best of Tiki Bar TV - 3 PM EST/ 12 PM PST
Dr. Tiki and the gang serve up another round of forbidden cocktails during this exclusive look into what makes the Tiki Bar hip.

Benevento / Russo Duo - 4 PM EST/ 1 PM PST
Marco Benevento takes us into the world of an indie-rock band that jams, and a jazz-combo that rocks.

Conspiracy Theater - 7 PM EST/ 4 PM PST
Me.dium’s own kev-h takes us down the rabbit hole to unearth the truth about 9/11, the grassy knoll and those so called moon landings. BYO tin foil beanie.

Fantasy football - 8 PM EST/ 5 PM PST
It’s the last week before the playoffs for many and some of us are fighting for our playoff lives. We’ll discuss the latest injuries, who should perform well and who to sit or start. So bring your opinions and the critical decisions you have to make.

Hungry?

Then we’ve got the perfect Me.Fest session for you. Join us for the premier of the latest Feed Me Bubbe over at chalutzproductions.com/exclusives/me.dium_11_27_07.htm.