Let me get this straight. Blippy.com, a new social media darling, wants me to sign up, enter my credit card information, and help me announce to the world my each and every purchase. “Blippy is a fun and easy way to see and discuss what everyone is buying,” their slogan says. “Blippy provides transparency into normal everyday things.” Passive sharing, they call it.
This is wrong on oh-so-many levels!
1. Why would anyone consider that my $7.58 spent at Subway today be considered newsworthy in any way? Unless you own Subway stock, this tidbit is about as exciting as my Twitter “friends” who broadcast their daily coffee count each morning. What could one possibly gain from knowing not only where I buy my java, but what I spent on it?
2. Why would I give my credit card to a group of 20-something (if that) web developers who have dropped out of Stanford and are working out of a leaky basement in East Palo Alto? I could trust a white-collar felon more than I’d trust a group of shabby, hungry frat boys looking for a meal ticket.
3. People can not only see how much the purchase cost, but also a detailed list of what was bought. Sorry, but there are people I don’t want seeing “Rite Aid. Feminine products. 4.92”
4. The Colbert report calls Blippy “More exciting than old receipts!” ‘Nuff said.