Social media and loyalty cards – the next big thing?

Loyalty cards: most of us have them these days. Supposedly we – the customers – derive great benefits from them because we can get “free stuff”. In reality, of course, the real beneficiaries are the producers because they can gather huge amounts of data about our spending patterns and adjust their marketing accordingly. Of course you could argue that this benefits the consumer too: it’s much better to get a money off voucher for a product you regularly consume than for something you’d never buy (I have a cat, so why do I need a dog food voucher?) Very clever.

Risks and safety for children on the internet

“29% of European children aged 9-16 who use the internet have communicated in the past with someone they have not met face-to-face before, an activity which may be risky but may be fun.” This is a quote from the report Risks and safety on the internet. The perspective of European children Initial findings from the EU Kids Online survey of 9-16 year olds and their parents. This report was published on 21 October 2010. It presents the initial findings for the “EU Kids Online II” project which is funded by the European Commission Safer Internet Programme. Its authors are Coordinator Sonia Livingstone plus Leslie Haddon, Anke Görzig and Kjartan Ólafsson.