Important notice for all AIM users.

[Trevoke]

Taken directly from the Terms of Service of AOL Instant Messenger.

[...][you retain ownership of everything you write on AIM, essentially, but...]You waive any right to privacy. You waive any right to inspect or approve uses of the Content or to be compensated for any such uses.

This bothers me. Now, I know I've established myself as an activist and all that crap in the Google topic, but this is serious.
If you do want to change Instant Messenger service, I suggest that you use Jabber (http://www.jabber.org is the main website, and http://www.jabber.org/user has links to explain what it is, how it works and how to get started).
Jabber is Open Source, free (as in free speech and free beer), and doesn't violate your privacy.


... Need I bring up 1984 again? :)
Seriously, this is dangerous.


[edit to fix formatting]
_________________
There are weapons you cannot hold in your hand.
You can only hold them in your mind.
-- Bene Gesserit Teaching

[Arcana]

Slashdot posted this up recently. However, this is very little to panic about especially since it's managed to escape the notice of users for over a year.

If no one's managed to notice for one year, and nothing interesting has come out of the changes, then are people still going to get worked up over it? It's kind of a deceptive case, I suppose, but it smacks to me of alarmism and paranoia.

Everyone in the Slashdot article talked about encryption and joked about how the average AIM message looks like encoded data.

The purpose of this is likely to allow advertising, and some people have expressed panicked concern over "You waive any right to privacy". It's interesting to notice that there's no equivalent runes governing content posted to MSN. Does that mean that they won't use any of the data that goes through the servers? Does that imply that we're safe if we switch?

Hard to tell. Now, my question is, has anyone switched IM clients since this news broke? I bet you that no one who used IM regularly has even made an effort to try encrypting their messages and to try to force all of their friends to do the same.
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Woo, 2000 posts as of Tuesday, 2007 August 28.

[Trevoke]

Arcana, if you're half as smart as you've shown to be recently, you know there is no such thing as a "user".
You have "those who know" and you have the "lusers".

Users do _not_ read the ToS - they scroll past and say "alright, let me get the damn software already!".

And.. Well, I'm still on AIM, but I'm getting off in July. Any excuse to leave AOL is a good excuse - and I am not taking my chances on ambiguous wording.
_________________
There are weapons you cannot hold in your hand.
You can only hold them in your mind.
-- Bene Gesserit Teaching

[Lunarblade]

Ehhh...I don't really care, it's their software and they can do what they want with it.

I don't talk about anything important on AIM anyway, so it doesn't concern me much.
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[Ranadiel]

I've just reread through that clause multiple times and I am almost positive that it is not referring to instant messages. It is refrencing if you post content(such as music or art) through an AIM product they gain the rights to use it without having to pay you and apparently they can use your name also. I am 99% sure that this is unrelated to just casual conversations you have over AIM.
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"Ye shall be as gods."

Titles: Harmonian Tenki Star, Harmonian Jousting Champion

[Trevoke]

Ranadiel : that's my concern. "AIM Product" includes AIM Software.. And it "sounds unrelated" but the wording is too ambiguous for me.
_________________
There are weapons you cannot hold in your hand.
You can only hold them in your mind.
-- Bene Gesserit Teaching

[kuwaizair]

I stoped using AIM, but thats kind of crazy, so they know what I'm saying? If I post art to somone thorugh it they own it? so what if I post somone else's art, then AOL will see their art being sold, thus person gets arrested. ah how good. or maybe I read that wrong.

or if they are tracking my activities to see if I'm doing anything illegal, how does that work? There millions of AIM usage a second I guess.
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few runes short of a set of 27

[Aurelien]

Ranadiel was correct. If you really read the ToS, it was clear enough that they were referring to "Content" (which was on the section before the waiving privacy part). I'll quote the part and bold what it meant with "Content"

[Arcana]

Black Pesmerga, "Communications" is ambiguous. Does that imply voice communication, or data communication, or what? AIM users post content on AIM products own the right to the content, yes, but AOL has the right to take that "communication" and use it in any way they see fit. The most probable use of this information is marketing, especially targetted marketing and advertising (not even posting on their web site to show "AIM in use").

[Aurelien]

[Arcana]

[Aurelien]

Why is it ambiguous? It's clear that communications refer to what you communicate with people. So it could be conversation, it could be voice communication, it could be anything that involves communication.

I'll give you another example on how "communication" is relevant in there. Say there are 2 people using AIM to plan something illegal (say robbing a bank), then AIM has the right to reveal the conversation between those 2 people in court as a proof.

Or if you're still so confused on what's in "content" and what's not, just think that everything that you do on AIM is "content".
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~City-States of Jowston and Tinto Republic~
06.06.2004 - 20.01.2008

[sybillious]

information aside, this is rapidly deteriorating...thread closed.
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prinny...DOOD!

gotta gotta get a...SPICE WEASEL!

to paraphrase my fellow mod, parallax:
I hate my job with the passionately burning intensity of a thousand fiery suns.