In the ongoing conversation about regulation of the tech industry, Barron’s has a wonderful article about the differences between revenue models used by companies such as Apple and Facebook. These differences, the article suggests, have tremendous impacts on data collection and ensuing regulations.
Patrick, this is such an interesting article that shows how truly different these two companies operate. In light of Facebook’s recent controversy, its business model makes its protection of user data crucial to Facebook’s success as this data serves as its primary cash cow. Apple on the other hand doesn’t make money off advertisements meaning it doesn’t rely on its data as the primary money making source, but rather the physical devices and online services which it offers.