Someone willing and able to pay for something as frivolous as Instagram or Snapchat makes them priceless to an advertiser. They want to make it easier to identify those people.
But yeah, when Snapchat rolled out their subscription program, I was all set to buy it to get rid of the annoying ads and AI in my chat list, then I realized I could do none of that. So now I just use it a lot less, which is probably better for them anyway.
The article mentions that this is a subscription for additional features. It doesn't say anywhere that you won't get ads. I think the ads-free subscription option is only available in certain markets, like the UK.
You WILL be getting ads in the app, though. There's nothing in the article that says you won't. This is like Snapchat's subscription. You get more features, but still have the ads. This isn't replacing "if it's free, you're the product", it's "if you're willing to pay, you're an even more valuable product".
I just got an email from my credit union that they're "transitioning from email passcode delivery to more secure methods such as phone calls and text messages". I need to send them this video.
That credit union is awful for many other reasons, so I don't keep much in that account, but I wonder why banking in the US is so bad at security. I don't think I have a single bank or credit card online account that allows for TOTP. It's all SMS or phone call, with one bank allowing for app push notifications.
Is there a compliance check box that requires SMS over something with at least some security?
That does help a bit with the banks, but I've not had any luck at all with the stores who cancel my orders after the payment goes through. They refuse to budge, assuming I even get a response, and won't give me any information about why my orders are cancelled, citing more vague security reasons.
I did have success with a privacy.com card once, at a store that cancelled orders from all of my other cards. I'm guessing they see it as a prepaid card and can't get as much info on those.
My favorite was the time I used my Disney credit card to book a trip to Disney World - flight, hotel, tickets, everything. No problem. Then I get to Disney World and my card gets locked when I try to buy a churro because I used my card in a new location.
I move to random corners of the world every 2-3 years and this is starting to give me real anxiety every time I try to make a purchase. One of my credit cards makes me jump through all of the verification and "Was this really you?" messages, then still locks my account half the time.
So many online stores will approve my purchase and bill the card with no issue, then cancel it a few hours later for vague security reasons. I remember when the credit card companies ran commercials about how easy and secure credit cards are, especially compared to checks, but now I feel like a criminal every time I try to use mine. I wonder if this violates any part of the merchant agreement that these stores are getting a 100% valid authorization on my credit card, but still aren't willing to accept my payment.
You can also look at it as discussion forums for pretty much any topic with single sign-on. Think of anything and you'll probably find it plus porn of it on Reddit with a quick search.