Online your history comes with a cost
Like so many others in Norway I recently received an e-mail from Schibsted, the company behind a lot of the national and regional/local newspapers. An e-mail that said that from May 27th they’d update their terms, and either I would have to pay an additional 40 NOK for them to NOT sell my data to tech companies. If I don’t succumb to personalized ads, I’ll have to pay them, even though I am already a paying subscriber.
This is the same tactic that Meta got into trouble with the EU for. E.U. Court Limits Meta’s Use of Personal Facebook Data for Targeted Ads
This is also despite turning a record profit in 2025, due to «growth in digital services and reduced costs». Schibsted-sjefen om kraftig løft i resultatet I 2025 So why do they do this? Because «the requirements for consent to data sharing are being interpreted and enforced increasingly strictly. We therefore need a model that respects the regulations, helps secure funding for independent journalism by giving advertisers better effectiveness from their ads, and provides you with a better user experience through more relevant advertisements.» I.e. we want to make more money of you without doing better.
Ad data is big business, which is an understatement. It is gigantic business, where we are the product. Information about us and our habits, actions, points of views, interests, etc. is sold to the highest bidder for them to again more effectively sell us things and convince us about things.
If the technology was there to succumb us all to «Buy Bombs», you know they wouldn’t even skip a beat in doing so. While all telling us it is necessary for them in order to provide us with the best quality of services. (Also, go read Transmetropolitan; it is relevant to all to many aspects of Today).
It is no surprise that people are angry. It is no surprise that people are canceling their subscriptions. Selling personal data to advertisers is nothing new, but the blatant disrespect that this shows is a sign of the coming times. How we must accept selling our own data to even purchase and pay for a service. And the most important way we can fight that, is with our wallets and being vocal about it. This isn’t just about Schibsted and their un-ethical practices in Norway; it is about what kind of Internet we want. We’re already hostages to social media outlets that have become a core pillar of society and capitalism, rather than the frivolous side-tent they ought to be.
For now, I am going to re-read Enshittification(Cory Doctorow , 2025) and cancel my subscriptions to the Schibsted papers. Then I can spend my money on smaller, more relevant outlets. Because we do get what we deserve. If we keep paying with a smile when they shovel shit at us, we deserve it. If we don’t pay for those that try to make a difference and give us what we need, we deserve it when they go away.
Oh, and consider getting a VPN. In these trying times, it is more than just recommended. I recommend Proton VPN (and their Mail and Drive services as well). Proton.me