I'm saying it's very low on the list of possibilities. Most of the data is of transient value (browser cookies last around 30 days on average). If Google is whittled down to a shell of its former self, to the point where they'd consider selling that data, presumably what data they have at that point isn't really that valuable.
On the one hand, I find it hard to believe that Google is not extracting data from cookies and looking at it over the long term.
On the other hand, I know that much of the data which Facebook is collecting will be pertinent twenty, thirty and forty years from now...e.g. my cousin will still be gay in 2036.
Finally, the notion of Google selling their data only seems remote given the current state of affairs. If Facebook starts selling direct access to their data, it makes Google far more likely to follow suit not only based on a need to stay competitive but also because the standard of acceptable behavior has been lowered and a new status quo has been created.
One need only look at the speed at which telephony has changed over the last five years or the music industry over the last ten to realize that business models of established companies can change rapidly.
>On the other hand, I know that much of the data which Facebook is collecting will be pertinent twenty, thirty and forty years from now...e.g. my cousin will still be gay in 2036.
I think Google could probably guess most gay people are gay from their searches, and the pages they visit.
