But it was a fair game: you go to a platform that costs money to run, and in return you provide your own data. They use this data to sell you relevant ads, ad companies reach the right audience, and everyone wins. Over time, data collection became more sophisticated and intrusive, and the profits increased, but the deal on your side remained the same. This model was so profitable that it was adopted everywhere from social media and online newspapers to TV with ads in menus. And, hey, even flight tracking. We’ll come back to this last point in a moment.
