Whilst Cath and Helene went kayaking on Munroe Island, I hung back at the villa. There was an option to do a tour of the island with the taxi driver who took them there. He’d be just waiting whilst they were on the river. I was tempted to go. However, I’m learning to pace myself. It’s easy to continually want to see the next thing. But the Indian heat can exhaust you without you realising it. I felt my batteries needed recharging. I sat outside the villa.
Apart from a brief conversation with a French couple, I read my book, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism. This is an interesting book about big tech, especially Google and Facebook.
If you define a company by how they make money, then Google and Facebook are advertising companies. Most of their profits come from advertising. That is why newspapers (local and national), magazines, and commercial TV channels are struggling. Google and Facebook have captured most of the advertising revenue.
The core idea in the book is that these companies originally used information about us to improve their products. For example, Google used our data to provide better search results. This has gradually changed. These companies now collect more data than they require to improve what they offer us.
There’s a saying that if you’re not paying then you’re the product. However, the author says this is not quite true. Some of the information you provide is still used to improve their services to us. However, our data is now harvested and analysed and used as raw material for profit.
The product to the end-user (us) is not what makes Google and Facebook money. They make money by packaging information about us for advertisers. To do this, they collect vast amounts of data about us. This information is used to predict and influence our behaviour. Through AI, nudges, and personalized content, these companies shape our actions to maximize engagement and profit.
One of the consequences of this is the loss of autonomy and privacy. People lose control over their personal data and decision-making as companies prioritize profit over individual rights.
As these companies know more about us, power shifts away from governments and individuals. It transfers to a few dominant tech companies. This shift poses risks to democracy and society.
Helene said the owner was interested in politics. When I spoke to him, he said he was fascinated about the subject matter. So, I gave him the book after I finished it.
When Cath and Helene returned, we had lunch. After more lazing around on the hammocks, we got the 1730 train back from Kollam to Thiruvananthapuram. Our beach villa owner had told us there was a nearer station to the villa. So we got off a stop earlier and got a cab. The roads were heavily congested with airport traffic.
We ordered from Mothers Veg again and had an early night.
